Denmark's Energy Policy 2008-2011

The range of initiatives covers energy savings and energy efficiency improvements, renewable energy, energy taxes, more effective energy technologies, and transport.

Energy savings
In the energy savings area, the ambitious aim has been set of decreasing gross energy consumption by 2% up to 2011 and by 4% up to 2020, compared to 2006.

Further initiatives include higher energy efficiency targets for end users and substantially reduced energy consumption in new buildings.

Campaigns will be instituted to promote energy savings in buildings and a knowledge centre for energy savings in buildings will be established.

Renewable energy
Renewable energy initiatives include the use of more biomass/waste and less fossil fuels in central combined heat and power stations, and programmes to increase the deployment of wind turbines both on land and offshore. Regarding the latter, the government plans to invite tenders
for two offshore wind farms each of 200 MW capacity, slated to come on stream in 2012.

The government is also allocating a substantial sum over 2 years to promote replacement of oil‐fired furnaces with heat pumps, including information campaigns, labelling of efficient pumps and subsidies for consumers outside areas with collective heating supplies.

Significant sums are also being allocated annually for 4 years for subsidising renewable energy technologies, including solar power and wave power.

Energy taxes
Energy taxes initiatives include an increase in the existing CO2 tax from 2008 and a new NOx tax from the beginning of 2010.

Energy technology
The new energy policy calls for a doubling of funding for energy research, development and demonstration. The PSO research agreement from 2004, which allocates substantial annual
funding, is prolonged after 2008.

Transport
In the transport area, the government's objective is that biofuels for transport must account for 5.75% of fuel consumption for transport on land by 2010 and 10% by 2020, corresponding
to the EU objective.

Hydrogen powered cars will be tax ‐ exempt, and the current tax ‐exempt status of electric cars will be extended to 2012. A test scheme for electric cars will receive significant state support from 2008 to 2012.