SEA Guidance Annex 36

EU requirements for National Renewable Energy Action Plans (NREAP) and National Energy and Climate Plans (NECP)

Europe’s energy and climate objectives rely on coordinated national planning across all member states. Annex 36 outlines the requirements for National Renewable Energy Action Plans and the more recent National Energy and Climate Plans, including the assessments each plan must include. While SEA is not consistently applied across all NECPs, the annex illustrates how some countries have used it to improve transparency, environmental analysis, and public participation.

overview

What’s Inside This Annex

NREAP Overview

The European Commission requires EU member states to submit a National Renewable Energy Action Plan (NREAP) outlining commitments and initiatives to develop renewable energy by 30 June 2010. NREAPs provided a detailed road map of how each member state expected to reach its legally binding 2020 target for the share of renewable energy in its total energy consumption, as required by Article 4 of the Renewable Energy Directive (2009/28/EC). The plans set out sectoral targets, the technology mix expected to be used, the trajectory to be followed, and the measures and reforms to be undertaken to overcome the barriers to developing renewable energy.

NECP Overview

In the European Union, a Regulation on the Governance of the Energy Union and Climate Action (EU) 2018/1999 entered into force on 24 December 2018 as part of the Clean Energy for All Europeans package. Under rules in this regulation, all member states were required to prepare a draft (by 2020) of a 10-year integrated national energy and climate plan (NECP) for the period from 2021 to 2030, charting how they aim to meet the EU’s energy and climate targets for 2030. The NECPs outline how EU countries intend to address: energy efficiency; renewables; greenhouse gas emissions reductions; interconnections; and research and innovation. Each Member State is required to ensure that the public is given early and effective opportunities to participate in the preparation of the draft integrated national energy and climate plan.

SEA of NECP, Slovenia

Slovenia carried out a comprehensive SEA of its NECP in parallel to the plan process, involving internal and open scoping, extensive stakeholder participation, and public discussion. The SEA addressed key themes such as climate change, health, natural resources, biodiversity, cultural heritage, landscape, and society, and assessed impacts for four scenarios. It was prepared by an external team of SEA experts, with the plan process led by the Ministry of Infrastructure and the SEA process by the Ministry of the Environment and Spatial Planning, which issued the opinion on SEA quality and the environmental acceptability decision.

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SEA Guidance Annex 36