Recently agreed revisions to the EU's Energy Efficiency Directive (EED) will set new tougher targets for member states to reduce energy consumption, while also requiring operators of large data centres for the first time to publish information on their energy consumption and efficiency.

The Council and European Parliament recently reached provisional political agreement on changes to the EED, which sets the overall framework for improving energy efficiency and achieving energy savings in the EU.

The latest revision of the directive raised the overall EU energy efficiency target to 11.7% by 2030 and increased the annual energy savings to be made by member states. At the same time, the EED introduced requirements for operators of large data centres to publish annual information on various indicators starting from May 2024.

The EED requires all member states to use energy more efficiently at all stages of the energy chain, including energy generation, transmission, distribution and end-use consumption. The directive also sets energy efficiency targets and clarifies the information provided on household bills to make consumers more aware of their actual energy consumption.

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