Eastern Europe’s green transition will need more work

Significance

National efforts, EU-wide measures, warm weather and low Chinese demand helped them weather the impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but partly at the expense of progress on decarbonisation and greener growth. Despite energy risks, high inflation, slowing external demand and high uncertainty, V4 economies defied predictions of a recession in 2022. However, long-term challenges remain.

Impacts

• Lagging on green transition and climate goals may hurt the V4’s international standing, market shares and competitiveness over the long run.
• Pollution will be increasingly penalised, while barriers to adopting clean technology and sustainable production will continue to fall.
• In Slovakia, an opposition victory in September may sideline green transition, threatening recovery plan reforms and associated EU funding.