Global economic crises, oil and gas wars, and the constant struggle for natural resources are forcing humanity to look at the world through the prism of mercantile interests, causing damage to nature. As a result, this leads to climate change, global warming and massive environmental pollution.Analyzing these trends, part of society is increasingly focusing on alternative energy sources. The purpose of the article is to analyze current trends in the use of alternative energy sources in EU countries and to determine the possibilities of their application in Ukraine. The research methods used in the work are the following: analysis, abstract and logical, generalization, comparison, economic and statistical, and graphical. It has been established that the most common alternative energy sources include solar, wind, water, biofuels, and others. Each of them has its advantages and disadvantages. At present, themechanism for encouraging the use of alternative energy sources in the European Union is the "green" tariff, premium "green" tariff, tenders, auctions, grants, soft loans, and tax and customs benefits. The analysis of renewable energy production trends in the EU showed that hydropower prevailed until 2012.In Ukraine, the share of primary energy from renewable sources is much lower than in the EU. The main areas of cooperation between the EU and Ukraine in the field of alternative energy have been identified.Wind and solar energy and biomass can become a full-fledged object of export from Ukraine to the European Union. It is established that in order to stimulate the production of clean energy in Ukraine, it is advisable to introduce loans with low-interest rates and grace periods, quota obligations andencourage the creation of energy cooperatives. The tax levers’ influence on carbon dioxide emissions reduction and the implementation of renewable energy sources usage have been determined.