European Union legislators have voted to increase the bloc’s share of renewable energy to more than 40% by 2030 after last-minute concessions were made on nuclear power.

The agreement on the new target was only reached after last-minute concessions were made to France and eastern European countries on nuclear power, which is low-carbon but produces radioactive waste.

It means nuclear power can be used for ammonia and hydrogen production to be used by industry as a replacement for fossil fuels.

The European parliament’s vote on Tuesday (12 September) increases the share of renewable power in the EU’s energy mix from a 30% target to 42.5% by 2030.