The European Union's flagship plan to break its dependence on Russian energy has lost momentum, according to a report published by the European Court of Auditors. The recent warning comes as fresh turbulence in the Middle East once again exposes the fragility of Europe's energy security. Launched in May 2022, REPowerEU was designed to phase out fossil fuel imports from Russia, diversify supply, accelerate the rollout of renewables and strengthen cross-border grids.
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The European Commission estimated that meeting these objectives would require around 300 billion euros in additional investment by 2030, funded through the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF), with member states invited to add dedicated REPowerEU chapters to their national recovery plans.
Funding gap exposes weak national uptake
The auditors' overall assessment is blunt: uptake has been disappointing. EU countries have earmarked just 54.3 billion euros of the 300 billion euros available, a gap that the report suggests points either to inflated initial estimates or to an inability to translate political ambition into concrete measures. National energy and climate plans, which were meant to anchor REPowerEU at member state level, largely lack specific actions or targets.
"Four years after its launch, REPowerEU has stalled, despite the fact that several hundred billion euros have been made available," said Mihails Kozlovs, the Member of the Court of Auditors responsible for the report. "New geopolitical tensions and their impact on energy markets clearly show that we need to source energy from a wider range of suppliers to avoid becoming overly dependent on a single one in future."
Renewables and grid build-out fall short
Russian oil imports have fallen sharply under EU sanctions, though the auditors flag uncertainty over volumes reaching the bloc via third countries or Russia's shadow fleet. Gas imports have also declined overall, yet several member states imported more Russian gas in 2024 than before the invasion of Ukraine. The auditors caution that mild winters and price-driven demand destruction have also played a role, meaning the plan's direct impact may be smaller than the headline figures suggest.
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Building out clean energy capacity has been a weak spot in particular. Renewables capacity added through REPowerEU is close to nothing, far below the 103 GW target the RRF set out. Grid expansion across borders has been equally disappointing, with auditors turning up only three relevant measures in two member states, one of which didn't even survive. On both fronts, the physical infrastructure REPowerEU was meant to deliver simply hasn't materialised. (hcn)
