Power Transition Tracker

Assessment of power utilities’ climate strategy

 

Why track the transition plans of power utilities?

The power sector is key to decarbonizing our societies. It covers a significant portion of our energy use, with decarbonization in this sector paving the way for many other sectors such as transport, the steel industry, metallurgical industries, chemistry, housing, etc. The Net Zero Emissions by 2050 (NZE) scenario from the International Energy Agency (IEA) states that the power sector must be decarbonized by 2035 in advanced economies and 2040 in other countries to limit global warming to 1.5°C with no or low overshoot.

Power utilities own, operate, and develop electricity production plants. The transformation of the power sector requires utilities to quickly adopt robust and ambitious energy transition plans. The main elements of these plans are: halt new fossil fuel developments, phase out fossil gas by 2035/2040, close coal and gas plants – and not sell or convert them to unsustainable technologies, and develop significant sustainable power supply.

Reports from power utilities on the position of their current transition plans tend to be unhelpfully varied, incomplete and hard for third parties to decipher. To be able to redirect financial support from the laggards to more ambitious utilities – those turning their backs on coal and gas supply, and focusing on the development of sustainable power solutions – financial actors need to access readable and comparable information. This need is even more crucial as European laws for extra-financial reporting are currently under threat and could be weakened.

To this end, the Power Transition Tracker assesses and compares the transition plans of the major European power utilities. It also highlights their most emblematic fossil gas developments to illustrate the existing toxic projects that are incompatible with the 1.5°C target.

Key findings

Fossil gas is still expanding.

7/10 power utilities plan to add 37 new fossil gas plants. 36 are in Europe.
EPH, PGE and RWE are the biggest gas developers. 

No commitment to phasing out fossil gas by 2035 in advanced economies.

Only Enel, PGE, and Statkraft plan to phase out gas by 2040 or 2042 globally. Too late for advanced economies. 

Decarbonization is jeopardized by reliance on fossil gas.

Only Enel, Iberdrola, RWE, and Statkraft are on track to have a sustainable energy mix by 2030. 

Insufficient investment in sustainable technologies.

Only 5/10 power utilities have ambitious sustainable CAPEX. 

Low compliance with 1.5°C scenarios.

5/10 power utilities are not aligned with a 1.5°C pathway. 

Weak climate reporting.

Publicly available data often does not allow a proper assessment of power utitilitestransition plans. 

Overall comparison table

An analysis of the transition plans of ten major European power utilities has been achieved via a comprehensive framework. It led to an assessment of these plans, based on data published in 2024/2025 and on a questionnaire send to the utilities analyzed. It allowed us to evaluate the quality of the companies’ climate strategies. The result of this assessment is presented in the following table.

Fossil gas expansion and phase-out Coal expansion and phase-out Sustainable development and
energy mix
Emissions reduction plan CAPEX Climate planning Transparency
A2A
Enel
ENGIE
EPH
Iberdrola
Naturgy
PGE
RWE
SSE
Statkraft

The company does not reach the basic elements of a transition plan

The company addresses the basic elements of a transition plan, but core elements still need to be clarified or improved to reach a robust
transition plan

The company addresses the core elements of a robust and ambitious transition plan. Further information can yet be provided and/or some
standards reinforced

No answer to the questionnaire sent to the utility (section “Transparency” only) 

toxic projects

Deep dive rankings

Laggards

Slow movers

Leaders

Transition plans of the power utilities

methodology

To assess the transition plans of power utilities, we have established a comprehensive analytical framework based on both the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS) requirements, and the baseline of “forward-looking indicators” provided in Reclaim Finance’s analysis. Our assessment of the transition plans of the companies is based on the reports and data publicly available, and on a questionnaire sent to the power utilities, allowing them to complete or correct the public data. This methodology is detailed in the following document.

What to require from power utilities ?

A guide for financial actors

Financiers involved in the power sector bear responsibility for supporting the decarbonization of power generation. Sectoral policies for fossil gas are needed now more than ever from financial institutions to keep ambitious, 1.5°C-aligned climate goals within reach. Moreover, investment and financing targets that contribute to the massive ramp up of sustainable power solutions are also required.

The transition plans of power utilities use heterogeneous assumptions, references, and timelines to set targets, making it difficult for financial institutions to easily assess and compare them. Access to a standardized and independent framework that provides a common basis for analysis is needed. To this end, we have developed a comprehensive analytical framework which delivers clear insights into the current trajectories of the European power utilities, highlighting the potential loopholes in their approaches.

The other trackers