You can find additional information on European climate and energy events and developments in the European Parliament’s European Green Deal legislative train schedule, in the event calendar of the Danish Council presidency, and in the Council’s press site.
2026
| Date | 1 January |
| Event | Cyprus takes over EU Council presidency |
| Subject | Cyprus assumes the presidency of the Council of the EU. The Council represents the executive governments of member states, and the presidency rotates among EU member states every six months. It is not only responsible for setting policy priorities and planning and chairing meetings among ministers and heads of government, but must also try and reach agreement on laws with the EU’s other legislative bodies – the Commission and the Parliament. Member states holding the presidency work together closely in groups of three, called 'trios'. Preceding presidencies Poland and Denmark cooperate with Cyprus. [More on the presidency] |
| Press contact | Cyprus presidency press contacts |
| Date | -- 15 April (postponed, currently no longer on Commission agenda) -- |
| Event | European Commission presents proposal to phase out remaining Russian oil imports |
| Subject | As part of its efforts to end Russian energy imports, the European Commission is set to present the RePowerEU proposal to phase out remaining Russian oil imports. A row over financial aid to Ukraine following an interruption of supplies through the Druzhba oil pipeline has shown how politically sensitive the topic is -- especially in Hungary, which still receives fossil fuels from Russia. The European Commission will no longer submit the proposal on April 15 as previously planned, an updated EU legislative agenda showed. An EU official, however, told Reuters the proposal had not been cancelled and would still be published though no longer by the mid-April date due to "current geopolitical developments" -- the Iran war and ensuing energy crisis. |
| Press contact | European Commission |
| Date | 24 June (tbc, no longer on Commission agenda) |
| Event | European Commission presents strategy on sustainable tourism |
| Subject | The European Commission is set to present a strategy on sustainable tourism. |
| Press contact | European Commission |
| Date | 25 June |
| Event | Meeting of member state environment ministers (Environment Council) |
| Subject | Member state environment ministers get together for one of several official meetings per year. Ministers will take stock of the progress of discussions on the amendment of the regulation on the CO2 emission standards for cars and vans and hold an informal debate on climate resilience. The Cyprus EU Council presidency will inform ministers on actions to strengthen the EU’s negotiating position in international climate meetings, ahead of the 31st UN climate change conference (COP31) to take place in November 2026. |
| Press contact | Peristera Dimopoulou (EU Council) |
| Date | 26 June |
| Event | Meeting of member state energy ministers (Energy Council) |
| Subject | Member state energy ministers get together for one of several official meetings per year. Ministers are set to agree on member states' position on the European grids package. In view of the upcoming update on the current legislation for renewable energy, energy efficiency, and rules on national energy and climate plans, energy ministers will share their views on how the post-2030 energy framework should be designed to achieve the 2040 climate target while ensuring affordable, homegrown energy and enhancing the EU's competitiveness. |
| Press contact | Peristera Dimopoulou (EU Council) |
| Date | Q2 (tbc; public consultation open until 29 July) |
| Event | European Commission presents proposal to set up Critical Raw Materials Centre |
| Subject | The Commission will propose setting up a Critical Raw Materials Centre to monitor, jointly purchase and stockpile these minerals, which are essential to EU industrial sovereignty. The Commission explains: "Critical raw materials are crucial for EU manufacturing, green, digital, aerospace and defence industries. The EU faces strong dependencies in its access to materials such as rare earth elements, which are being exploited by other geopolitical players. To address them, as called for in the Draghi report, the Commission is planning to set up an EU Critical Raw Materials Centre consisting of 4 strands: joint purchasing, stockpiling, investments, and raw materials intelligence." |
| Press contact | European Commission |
| Date | 1 July |
| Event | Ireland takes over EU Council presidency |
| Subject | Ireland assumes the presidency of the Council of the EU. Three pillars will be the central themes of the Irish Presidency: competitiveness, values and security. On the energy transition, the Irish government said:
It also said that it is "committed to delivering on the EU’s ambitious agenda to fight climate change and shift to a climate-neutral economy by 2050." The Council represents the executive governments of member states, and the presidency rotates among EU member states every six months. It is not only responsible for setting policy priorities and planning and chairing meetings among ministers and heads of government, but must also try and reach agreement on laws with the EU’s other legislative bodies – the Commission and the Parliament. Member states holding the presidency work together closely in groups of three, called 'trios'. The following presidencies Lithuania and Greece cooperate with Ireland. [More on the presidency] |
| Press contact | Ireland's Department of Foreign Affairs: email Press.office@dfa.ie, phone: +353 (0) 1 408 2268 |
| Date | 7 July |
| Event | European Commission presents livestock strategy |
| Subject | In the State of the Union address for 2025, the European Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen, announced that in 2026 it plans to present a livestock strategy with the aim of protecting wildlife and the environment, enhancing competitiveness and improving elements of animal welfare. In its work programme for 2026, the Commission outlined that the livestock strategy will foster the competitiveness, resilience and sustainability of the EU livestock sector and agri-food chain. |
| Press contact | European Commission |
| Date | 15 July |
| Event | European Commission presents proposals to reform the ETS |
| Subject | As part of efforts to legislate climate policy post-2030, the Commission will propose to update the EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) for maritime, aviation and stationary installations, and the relevant market stability reserve. The debate has markedly heated up in 2026, as governments of some member states have called for a softening, or even the suspension of the system. |
| Press contact | European Commission |
| Date | 15 July |
| Event | European Commission presents electrification, energy security plans as part of energy package |
| Subject | The European Commission is set to present
as part of a bigger energy package. A heating and cooling strategy is no longer on the official agenda. The proposal has been delayed several times. |
| Press contact | European Commission |
| Date | 23 - 24 July |
| Event | Informal meeting of EU environment ministers |
| Subject | The Irish EU Council presidency invites environment ministers to Dublin. Ireland: "The meeting will offer ministers an opportunity to exchange perspectives on long-term climate and environmental challenges impacting the European Union. The meeting will provide an opportunity for informal and forward-looking discussions ahead of the formal ENVI Council meetings in October and December." |
| Press contact | Irish EU Council presidency |
| Date | 20 - 21 September |
| Event | Informal meeting of EU transport ministers |
| Subject | The Irish EU Council presidency invites transport ministers to Dublin. Ireland: "The meeting will facilitate discussion on how the EU transport network provides the backbone of the single market, and how transport policy at EU level should evolve to support a safe, secure, resilient and competitive Union into the future. The informal nature of the meeting will enable constructive dialogue and exchange of perspectives in preparation for the formal meeting of the TTE Council (Transport) in November." |
| Press contact | Irish EU Council presidency |
| Date | 28 - 29 September |
| Event | Informal meeting of EU energy ministers |
| Subject | The Irish EU Council presidency invites energy ministers to Dublin. Ireland: "The meeting will provide an opportunity for ministers to exchange views on strategic priorities relating to the energy transition and broader cooperation on energy policy. The informal format of the meeting will facilitate strategic dialogue and policy reflection ahead of the formal meetings of the TTE Council (Energy) in October and December." |
| Press contact | Irish EU Council presidency |
| Date | Q3 |
| Event | European Commission presents Circular Economy Act |
| Subject | The Commission will present a Circular Economy Act to foster demand and supply of circular products and reduce dependencies on critical resources. |
| Press contact | European Commission |
| Date | Q3 |
| Event | European Commission presents legislative proposals for energy rules for the 2030s |
| Subject | The Commission said it aims to update Energy Union rules, including on CO2 transportation and markets; energy efficiency; and the renewable energy framework. |
| Press contact | European Commission |
| Date | 12 October |
| Event | Meeting of member state environment ministers (Environment Council) |
| Subject | Member state environment ministers get together for one of several official meetings per year. |
| Press contact | Peristera Dimopoulou (EU Council) |
| Date | 15 October |
| Event | European Council |
| Subject | Member state heads of state and government get together for one of several official meetings per year. |
| Press contact | Maria Tomasik (European Council) |
| Date | 29 October |
| Event | Meeting of member state energy ministers (Energy Council) |
| Subject | Member state energy ministers get together for one of several official meetings per year. |
| Press contact | Niels Timmermans (EU Council) |
| Date | 13 November |
| Event | Informal meeting of EU heads of state and government |
| Subject | The Irish EU Council presidency invites member state heads of state or government to Dublin. |
| Press contact | Irish EU Council presidency |
| Date | 30 November |
| Event | Meeting of member state transport ministers (Transport Council) |
| Subject | Member state transport ministers get together for one of several official meetings per year. |
| Press contact | Niels Timmermans (EU Council) |
| Date | 10 December |
| Event | Meeting of member state energy ministers (Energy Council) |
| Subject | Member state energy ministers get together for one of several official meetings per year. |
| Press contact | Peristera Dimopoulou (EU Council) |
| Date | 11 December |
| Event | Meeting of member state environment ministers (Environment Council) |
| Subject | Member state environment ministers get together for one of several official meetings per year. |
| Press contact | Peristera Dimopoulou (EU Council) |
| Date | 17 December |
| Event | European Council |
| Subject | Member state heads of state and government get together for one of several official meetings per year. |
| Press contact | Maria Tomasik (European Council) |
| Date | Q4 |
| Event | European Commission presents update of Energy Union governance |
| Subject | The Commission will present legislative proposals to update the governance of the Energy Union and Climate Action including the phase-out of fossil fuels subsidies. It aims to "ensure a genuine Energy Union by improving its governance, upgrading grids, removing existing bottlenecks, cutting red tape for cross-border energy projects and boosting electrification and the resilience of the electricity system." |
| Press contact | European Commission |
| Date | Q4 |
| Event | European Commission presents proposals for national climate targets for the 2030s |
| Subject | As part of efforts to legislate climate policy post-2030, the Commission will propose to revise national targets and flexibilities currently governed by the effort sharing and LULUCF regulations. |
| Press contact | European Commission |
| Date | Q4 |
| Event | European Commission presents proposals on climate resilience |
| Subject | As part of climate change adaptation efforts, the European Commission will present a European integrated framework for climate resilience. |
| Press contact | European Commission |