The European electricity sector has announced its intention to move away from coal and focus on clean energy.
In an announcement on Wednesday, Eurelectric said that the European power sector was determined to "play a key role in providing clean energy for all Europeans" and to also "make electricity a central energy carrier for the low carbon economy."
Eurelectric represents 3,500 companies across Europe with an aggregate turnover of 200 billion euros ($213 billion).
An additional statement from Eurelectric, also released on Wednesday and adopted by its board of directors, said that the European electricity sector believed that achieving the decarbonisation objectives as set out in the landmark Paris Agreement, was "essential to guarantee the long-term sustainability of the global economy."
The statement went on to say that the European power sector did not "intend to invest in new-build coal-fired power plants after 2020." This intention was not supported by Polish and Greek member associations.
"The power sector is determined to lead the energy transition and back our commitment to the low carbon economy with concrete action," António Mexia, Eurelectric president and CEO of the Portuguese energy group EDP, said in a statement.
"With power supply becoming increasingly clean, electric technologies are an obvious choice for replacing fossil fuel based systems, for instance in the transport sector to reduce greenhouse gas emissions," Mexia added.
