When will Europe finally get serious about electrification?

When the Strait of Hormuz was closed, our dependency on imported fossil fuels and our vulnerability to geopolitical shocks was once again painfully obvious. Europe still imports 64% of its energy demand. Last year alone, we spent €337 billion on that.

So how does Europe protect itself from political decisions taken elsewhere? How can we increase our energy security and finally move from constant crisis to a new state of confidence?

The answer is simple: we must get serious about electrifying Europe’s economy with homegrown renewable electricity. 

Today, only around 25% of Europe's total energy is electricity. The other 75%? That's the gasoline you put in your car or the natural gas you use to heat your home. Electrification means switching those 75% over. Instead of burning gas to heat your house, you use an electric heat pump. Instead of filling up with petrol, you charge an electric car. Instead of a gas burner in a factory, you use an electric furnace or e-boiler.

Once something runs on electricity, it can run on any source of electricity. That's why electrification and clean energy go hand in hand: you can't power a petrol engine with a wind turbine, but you can power an electric motor with one.

Security and competitiveness

Electrification is not just about clean energy. It is about competitiveness, security, and growth. It keeps value in Europe. And it gives businesses a stable and affordable energy base.

Electrification strengthens competitiveness by reducing exposure to fossil fuel costs and improving industrial efficiency. Today, fossil fuels still drive high and volatile electricity prices. Electrification backed by renewables brings stable, homegrown power. Wind already delivers 20% of Europe’s electricity and helps bring down wholesale prices, supporting re‑industrialisation and stronger margins for European industry.

Electrification keeps value in Europe and strengthens Europe’s energy security. It replaces imported fuels with domestically generated electricity and local jobs. Europe still spends hundreds of billions on fossil fuel imports, while wind energy is produced at home. The European wind sector already supports over 440,000 jobs across more than 250 factories. It’s one of the last clean-tech sectors with a significant manufacturing footprint in Europe. Every euro invested in wind generates around €7 annually for the European economy, anchoring growth and investment locally.

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Electrification delivers more affordable energy by scaling up low-cost renewables and reducing exposure to global price shocks. A renewables-based system is the cheapest option for Europe, with up to €1.6 trillion in system savings by 2050. That’s true even when factoring in the additional costs for electricity grids and backup power a renewables-based energy system. Modelling from last year suggests a renewables-based energy system could save Europe up to 1.6 trillion euros by 2050. More domestic electricity stabilises prices, reduces volatility and gives businesses a predictable and competitive energy base.

Boosting supply 

The economics are settled. The problem now is delivery. We are in an energy crisis. Yet, European Governments are not doing enough to boost the supply of homegrown renewables.

Permitting is the first bottleneck. A wind farm that takes seven years to approve is a wind farm Europe does not have when it needs it. Rules are overly complex and fragmented across Member States. Processes are not sufficiently digitalised.

The second obstacle is grid connection. 400GW of wind capacity are currently stuck in grid connection queues. This is a solvable problem. The UK cleared half its queue in a year. The necessary rules exist in EU law. Member States simply need to apply them.

Auctions are the third obstacle. Countries are not auctioning enough new wind capacity. Europe is creating artificial scarcity in an energy market it cannot afford to starve. Without steady volumes, investment stalls and supply chains cannot scale. Just as importantly, auction design must provide predictability. Failed auctions and poorly designed schemes undermine investor confidence and delay projects. Europe needs stable, bankable frameworks. Two‑sided Contracts for Difference are key. They reduce risk, guarantee revenues and protect consumers from price spikes.

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Even the lowest‑hanging fruit, repowering, is facing barriers. Europe wind farms reliably deliver clean, homegrown electricity, 20% of Europe’s electricity consumption. But many first-generation turbines are reaching the end of their lifetime. Replacing them with modern turbines can deliver significantly more electricity with fewer units on the same site. On average, repowering projects in Europe reduce the number of turbines by 25%, while increasing output 3-fold.

Boosting renewable energy supply is not a cost. It is an investment in growth. But alone it is not enough. Households, industry and mobility must switch to electrified processes – which they will only do with the right incentives in place.

The electric switch

Europe can build as many wind turbines as it wants. But if cars still run on petrol and factories still burn gas, that electricity will simply go to waste. The other half of the transition requires changes to the demand side: people and businesses switching to electric.

Large parts of Europe’s energy consumption can already be electrified with existing technology. Up to 930TWh of industrial heat demand can switch today. That is equivalent to the combined electricity demand of France and Germany.  The opportunity is massive.

Read more: EU proposes renewable energy and energy efficiency frameworks for 2030-2040

But the incentives are not there. Electricity is too expensive relative to gas. Electricity is heavily taxed. About 25% of what industry pays for electricity goes to taxes and regulated charges. That makes switching financially difficult.

We must make electricity the cheapest option. That means cutting taxes on electricity. It means more flexible State aid rules for electrification investments. It means zero VAT on heat pumps and electric vehicles, and it means making it easier for companies to procure electricity via power purchase agreements.

Electrification is Europe’s growth strategy. But it requires clear choices. We must prioritise homegrown electricity over fossil imports. We must remove barriers to new wind energy, and we must make electrification affordable for consumers and industry.

The direction is clear. The benefits are clear. What matters now is delivery.