Last week, energy ministers from across European Union gathered in Copenhagen alongside Dan Jørgensen, the European Commission’s Energy Commissioner, for an informal ministerial meeting. Their message was clear: Europe’s path to energy independence runs through clean and homegrown solutions.

In this context, the Ministers visited the Avedøre Power Station, a landmark of Denmark’s energy transition. Once coal-fired, Avedøre has been steadily transformed. Its Unit 2 of the plant switched to sustainable biomass in 2014, and Unit 1 followed in 2016, now running primarily on sustainably sourced wood pellets and straw. This shift is more than symbolic: it means heat for over 215,000 homes in the Greater Copenhagen area and electricity for the equivalent of over 600,000 Danish households, without coal or gas.

The impact is tangible. The plant’s conversion expects to cut around 500,000 tonnes of CO₂ emissions each year, the same as taking 255,000 cars off the road. It is a cornerstone in Denmark’s push to deliver fossil-free district heating by 2025 and shows how bioenergy can complement wind and solar, making local energy systems more reliable and resilient.

For the Danish bioenergy sector, Avedøre stands as proof that bioenergy is a strategic European resource that strengthens energy security, supports local jobs, and builds climate resilience. 

As Europe faces growing energy and climate challenges, places like Avedøre show the way forward: turning local resources into clean, reliable energy, and proving that the green transition is already happening, city by city.