RePower EU Proposal for a REDII amendment

The document critiques the REPowerEU proposal's attempt to accelerate renewable energy permitting, claiming it bypasses essential environmental assessments and violates EU administrative procedures.

• The proposal's Article 16a(3) would remove the requirement for Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA) and assessments under Article 6(3) of the Habitats Directive for projects in 'renewables go-to areas', which ClientEarth describes as a 'lawfully dubious attempt to amend a key provision of the Habitats Directive by the back door'.
• Article 16a(4) introduces screening deadlines of 15 or 30 days for projects in go-to areas, which the document claims is an 'unrealistic deadline' that may encourage public authorities to 'take shortcuts' and overlook environmental effects.
• Article 16d creates a presumption that renewable projects are of 'overriding public interest', which ClientEarth argues risks 'muddy the waters' regarding existing EU legislation and jurisprudence on the subject.
• Article 16a(5) proposes that permits in go-to areas be authorised from an environmental perspective without an express decision from a competent authority, a move the document claims is 'highly problematic' and potentially unconstitutional in some Member States.
• The document asserts that the Commission failed to conduct a required impact assessment, citing 'political sensitivity' and 'urgency' as justifications, which ClientEarth argues sets a 'dangerous precedent' for the EU rule of law.
• The public consultation process is described as inadequate and in violation of procedural requirements, alleging that civil society and environmental organisations were excluded while the energy sector was given 'early and effective opportunities to participate'.

APA

Condon, J., Agapakis, I., & Heslop, A. (2022). RePower EU Proposal for a REDII amendment. ClientEarth. https://www.clientearth.org/media/itejqaby/clientearth_repowereu-permitting-amendments-briefing_july-2022.pdf

Chicago

Condon, John, Ioannis Agapakis, and Anna Heslop. RePower EU Proposal for a REDII amendment. ClientEarth, 2022. https://www.clientearth.org/media/itejqaby/clientearth_repowereu-permitting-amendments-briefing_july-2022.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Condon |first1=John |last2=Agapakis |first2=Ioannis |last3=Heslop |first3=Anna |title=RePower EU Proposal for a REDII amendment |publisher=ClientEarth |date=June 2022 |url=https://www.clientearth.org/media/itejqaby/clientearth_repowereu-permitting-amendments-briefing_july-2022.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{condon2022repower, author = {Condon, John and Agapakis, Ioannis and Heslop, Anna}, title = {{RePower EU Proposal for a REDII amendment}}, institution = {ClientEarth}, year = {2022}, month = jun, url = {https://www.clientearth.org/media/itejqaby/clientearth_repowereu-permitting-amendments-briefing_july-2022.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }