Part of Our EU-27 Green Tax Wiki

Return to the Denmark page

Denmark is a world leader for renewable energy, and paves the way for other parts of the world in terms of clean initiatives. In Denmark, about 30-35% of all energy comes from renewed sources. Biofuels are the top renewable energy source, along with wind, solar, and geothermal energy (denmark.dk). Huge expansions are underway in terms of wind energy in Denmark during 2020, in terms of offshore wind turbines and farms which are set to increase wind energy use. A giant offshore wind farm is set to be put in place in the Baltic Sea, off the coast of Denmark in 2022. This wind farm is set to produce enough electric power to fuel 600,000 households (denmark.dk). This increase in wind power has led to the implementation of a climate law meant to decrease CO₂ emissions by 70% by 2030 (Berggreen).

Denmark has an extensive history, emphasizing their initiatives to promote renewable and clean energy in Denmark. It began in the 1970’s with the oil crisis, when there was a push to replace coal with biofuels and wind energy. The 1990’s also proved to be influential for the country in terms of country wide leadership and promotion of environmentalist ideals (De Bellefonds). This came to be post the U.N. climate summit, with Denmark being a stand out. that it sets a strict emission target across energy, housing, industry, transport, agriculture, and forestry sectors. There is monitoring that takes place in order to ascertain that this law is being upheld, and individuals get removed from their posts if the goals are not met. This process incentivizes these sectors to adhere to laws, or face repercussions that affect individuals and their job security (De Bellefonds). It is important to note the unique structure of the Danish economy, and being able to carry out climate laws and promises such as this one- something that most other nations are unable to achieve which is not having to choose between the environment and the economy (De Bellefonds). According to the US News article, Denmark Floats a Possible Model for Climate Policy, politics have recently started majorly honing in on climate related issues, with about 46% of voters ranking it their main concern, as compared to around 27% in 2017.

Furthermore, in order to make the Danish promises come to life in regards to the new, strong, climate law there needs to be focus on areas that play a role in the country’s emissions and eco-footprint. One of these areas is the transportation sector, which needs to be improved upon (De Bellefonds). A way to do this would be to implement greater incentives to discourage the operation of vehicles that use fossil fuels. There is already taxation implemented on car ownership, which discourages driving due to the higher price of car ownership based on CO₂. According to the Environmental Implementation Report 2019- Denmark, the taxes will take into account electric cars, hybrids, etc. through registration fees with prices being lowered and eventually phased in.

There is infrastructure put in place to allow for easy access to biking lanes and the ability to comfortably choose the biking option in Danish cities, especially Copenhagen. This infrastructure serves as an incentive to give up driving a car, and pick up bicycle riding due to the ease of doing so and the avoidance of the vehicle taxes that are in place. The biking lanes consist of single direction paths going in either direction, located on both sides of the road. The infrastructure project to create a safe and pleasant biking environment and culture has been going on for more than 30 years (Cycling Embassy of Denmark).

Denmark ended up reaching their 2020 goal for solar energy ahead of time, which calls for 200-megawatt solar cell capacity. There is a strong solar sector in Denmark in which the demand for solar cells has greatly increased. This sector provides user/customer friendly developments, which meet the demands of customers, which likely causes more demand and compliance with the solar initiatives. Denmark has a strong emphasis on renewable energy, and a higher portion of it than other economies. These practices serve as incentives for Danish people to buy into these new climate friendly ways. The time incentive, as well as the well-known Danish commitment to renewable energy and lower emissions creates a healthy environment for the solar energy plans which are projected to reach 3400 MW by 2030 (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark).

Lastly, the EU 2020 targets can be summarized as reducing the greenhouse gas emissions from buildings, agriculture, and transportation by 20%. Making the fraction of renewable energy in total energy consumption 30% by 2020, and making the fraction of renewable energy in the transport system 10% by 2020 (Danish Energy Agency). These goals are achieved by incentives to promote renewable energy instead of fossil fuels, which requires participation from the governments, as well as the general public, at large.

Works Cited

Berggreen, Jesper. "Denmark Passes Magic 50% in Renewable Electricity Generation Milestone.", January 5, 2020, https://cleantechnica.com/2020/01/05/denmark-passes-magic-50-in-renewable-electricity-generation-milestone/.

"Bicycle Infrastructure .", http://www.cycling-embassy.dk/facts-about-cycling-in-denmark/bicycle-infrastructure/.

"Danish Climate Policies .", https://ens.dk/en/our-responsibilities/energy-climate-politics/danish-climate-policies.

De Bellefonds, Colleen. "Denmark Floats a Possible Model for Climate Policy." U.S. News Report, January 7, 2020, https://www.usnews.com/news/best-countries/articles/2020-01-07/denmarks-aggressive-new-climate-law-blazes-path-for-developed-countries.

"Denmark Reaches 2020-Goal for Solar Energy before Time.", https://um.dk/en/news/newsdisplaypage/?newsid=25147b44-3dce-4647-8788-ad9243c22df2.

"Environmental Implementation Report 2019 – Denmark." European Commission, 2019, pp. 26-28, https://ec.europa.eu/environment/eir/pdf/report_dk_en.pdf.

"Pioneers in Clean Energy .", https://denmark.dk/innovation-and-design/clean-energy.