DG ENER FWC - Energy and Housing

An affordable, secure, reliable and clean energy supply for citizens and businesses is a central goal of EU energy policy on the path to climate neutrality by 2050. With the extended remit of the Commissioner for Energy and Housing, housing too has moved more firmly into focus: high energy and housing costs deepen energy poverty and particularly affect low- and middle-income households.

The Wuppertal Institute supports the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Energy (DG ENER) under a four-year framework contract, providing socio-economic and technical expertise in areas such as energy markets and consumer rights, energy infrastructure, net-zero technologies, energy security and housing. This includes factoring in energy efficiency and renewable energy as cross-cutting issues, for example when analysing energy markets, infrastructure or net-zero technologies – provided that the respective tasks do not fall under a separate EU contract.

Depending on the specific issues at hand, the project team reviews scientific literature and legal sources, analyses data and markets – and, on this basis, assesses the impacts of possible policy options. Where needed, the researchers supplement their work with evaluations, fitness checks, consultations and stakeholder engagement. The methodology follows the European Commission’s better regulation guidelines. Depending on the research questions, the project team compiles the results in the form of reports, data analyses or decision papers.

The Wuppertal Institute’s contribution lies in connecting energy policy, energy and transformation research, as well as techno-economic and environmental impact assessment. This allows for integrated analyses of the relevant technical, economic, environmental and social aspects.