European Agreement to Reduce Energy Use by 2030

The European Union reached an agreement today, Friday, to reduce final energy consumption across all member states by 11.7% by 2030. Lawmakers stated that this goal would help combat climate change and reduce Europe's reliance on Russian fossil fuels. The agreement was reached after overnight negotiations between EU country negotiators and the European Parliament. Negotiators agreed that the energy used by final consumers, such as households and factories, in the bloc by 2030 must be 11.7% lower than the expected usage by that date. The agreement will now be sent to the European Parliament and EU countries for a final vote, which is usually a procedural formality for approving the law without any changes.