Reaching climate neutrality in Estonia

The document argues that climate neutrality in Estonia by 2050 is feasible and likely profitable, provided the government implements early, ambitious investments and supportive regulatory frameworks. Key priorities include decarbonizing the energy supply by shifting away from oil shale, increasing energy efficiency in buildings, industry, and transport, and leveraging natural assets for carbon sequestration in the LULUCF sector. The transition is estimated to cost EUR 17.3 billion between 2021 and 2050, with 76% of funding expected from the private sector. To ensure a just transition, the report emphasizes the need for targeted support in the oil-shale dependent North-East region and workforce retraining.

• Achieving climate neutrality in Estonia by 2050 is considered feasible and likely to be profitable due to economic savings and associated health and environmental benefits.
• The transition requires a shift away from oil shale toward wind, solar, and local bioresources, alongside the incubation of hydrogen and carbon capture utilization and storage (CCUS) technologies.
• Carbon sequestration opportunities exist within the land use, land-use change and forestry (LULUCF) sector, specifically through afforestation, strategic forest management, and peat soil restoration.
• A just transition requires specific policy attention and investment in North-East Estonia due to the geographic concentration of the oil-shale industry, potentially utilizing the EU Green Deal Just Transition Mechanism.

APA

Tammiste, L., Grünvald, O., Kirsimaa, K., Suik, K., Org, M., Meeliste, S., Terase, S., & Nolan (2020). Reaching climate neutrality in Estonia. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/reaching-climate-neutrality-in-estonia.pdf

Chicago

Tammiste, Lauri, Olavi Grünvald, Kerli Kirsimaa, Karina Suik, Madis Org, Siim Meeliste, Sharna Terase, and Nolan. Reaching climate neutrality in Estonia. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2020. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/reaching-climate-neutrality-in-estonia.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Tammiste |first1=Lauri |last2=Grünvald |first2=Olavi |last3=Kirsimaa |first3=Kerli |last4=Suik |first4=Karina |last5=Org |first5=Madis |last6=Meeliste |first6=Siim |last7=Terase |first7=Sharna |last8=Nolan |title=Reaching climate neutrality in Estonia |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |date=March 2020 |url=https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/reaching-climate-neutrality-in-estonia.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{tammiste2020reaching, author = {Tammiste, Lauri and Grünvald, Olavi and Kirsimaa, Kerli and Suik, Karina and Org, Madis and Meeliste, Siim and Terase, Sharna and Nolan}, title = {{Reaching climate neutrality in Estonia}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2020}, month = mar, url = {https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/reaching-climate-neutrality-in-estonia.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }