Much of the power across Eastern Europe is still supplied by destructive coal power plants. However, many of these markets across the region also have considerable renewables potential. Untapping this resource would unleash the energy transition for these countries but it remains complex and costly.Until the start of 2022, natural gas was seen as a vital stepping stone for the region to begin decarbonising before shifting entirely to renewables, but the war in Ukraine has placed a spotlight on this assumption.In this episode, we are joined by Monica Morawiecka from the Regulatory Assistance Project, who previously spent very many years at Polish utility PGE, and by Julian Popov, a fellow of the European Climate Foundation, chair of the Buildings Performance Institute Europe, a member of European Council on Foreign Relations and who previously served as Minister of Environment and Water for Bulgaria.Listen and subscribe to Watt Matters wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @WattMattersPod or email us at show@wattmatterspodcast.com. You can also find FORESIGHT Climate & Energy on LinkedIn.Show notes:- UK Energy Security Strategy: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1067835/british-energy-security-strategy-web.pdf- Germany “Easter Package”: https://www.bmwi.de/Redaktion/EN/Pressemitteilungen/2022/04/20220406-federal-minister-robert-habeck-says-easter-package-is-accelerator-for-renewable-energy.html- IPCC Mitigation options graph: https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg3/figures/summary-for-policymakers/figure-spm-7- Low-carbon inertia: https://www.nationalgrideso.com/news/scotlands-wind-success-story- Popov FORESIGHT op-ed: https://foresightdk.com/coal-regions-could-drive-european-competitiveness/- Popov FORESIGHT op-ed: https://foresightdk.com/eu-green-deal-carbon-austerity-or-economic-boost/- And about the risks for the east-west divide: https://www.sieps.se/en/publications/2021/the-european-green-deal-and-the-risk-of-widening-the-east-west-gap/TRY FULL ACCESS TO FORESIGHT CLIMATE & ENERGY FOR €1 A DAYJoin over 100,000 policymakers, energy experts in business, finance, and academia, city leaders, and leading NGOs in having access to FORESIGHT Climate & EnergyGET YOUR 30 DAY TRIAL: www.foresightdk.com/subscribe/.

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