Let's hear it from the cities: On the role of renewable energy in reaching climate neutrality in urban Europe

Renewable energy sources have emerged globally as a key lever to ensure energy security and to promote climate mitigation. Cities need to exploit this energy transition, but how they are building their strategies and actions is undetermined. A new dataset, collected through the European 100 Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities Mission, offers unique insights on the 362 cities which expressed the ambition to reach climate neutrality by 2030. Insights include their level of preparedness, ambition, capacity and the risks envisaged in the pursuit of zeroemission and greener futures. This study focuses in particular on the role of renewable energy across high greenhouse gas emitting sectors in cities (e.g. buildings, mobility, waste and industry). It analyses i) the status quo for renewable energy generation, consumption, and policymaking, ii) the key measures to enhance and upscale renewable energy deployment in the near future, and iii) how policies and relevant instruments will evolve to curb emissions and accelerate the energy transition. The insights that emerge from the analysis are discussed in relation to existing evidence, to inform future research strands and forms of assistance for cities. Overall, for cities to deliver on large renewable projects, efforts need to be intensified, barriers need to be lifted and multi-governance approaches must be operationalised.