EC president calls on Europe to increase use of renewables

BRUSSELS, Belgium, November 29, 2006 (Refocus Weekly)

Europe must increase its use of renewables, according to the president of the European Commission.

“Europe's energy landscape is changing and changing fast,” José Manuel Barroso told an energy conference. Global energy demand will increase 60% by 2030, hydrocarbon reserves in Europe are declining and the EU imports 50% of its energy, which will rise to 70% without policy reform.

The price of oil and gas is rising, with oil prices increasing six fold over the past seven years and becoming more volatile, he explained, and the climate is changing. “So the facts are changing and we in the European Union must change our policies to fit these facts. In doing so, we must recognise the enormous energy presence of the European Union; the EU is the largest importer and second largest consumer of energy in the world.”

“We must substantially increase the amount of energy we use from renewable, and low carbon energy sources,” he said. “These include wind energy, photovoltaic energy, wave energy, biofuels and, for those countries which so wish, nuclear energy,” noting that member countries (and not the EC) must decide on whether nuclear is used “but an honest debate on the costs and benefits of nuclear energy, underpinned by a rigorous economic analysis, must not be taboo.”

“Energy policy, just as European integration, is not just about abstract ideas; it is about everyday life,” he explained. “The EU's combined weight on the world energy market, as in so many other areas, is a great strength.”

“We intend to continue our global leadership in this area but we will only do so if we look ahead, and act together,” he added. “Fortunately, a quiet revolution has been taking place across Europe; a revolution that acknowledges the need for a common, integrated energy policy.”

The European Commission released a green paper on energy that was endorsed by its members in March, to state that the EU needs an integrated continental energy policy that “maintains Europe’s competitiveness, safeguards our environmental objectives and ensures our security of supply,” he noted. “By integrated, I mean a policy that takes account of all aspects of energy, both internal and external. We cannot, we must not separate one from the other; they must be part of one coherent whole.”

“A true single market will not just boost Europe's competitiveness; it will encourage sustainability through allowing more renewable energies to compete fairly with traditional sources of energy, and it will increase security and solidarity through ending energy islands within Europe and stimulating diversity,” he said. “Let me be clear: open markets, not narrow nationalism, are the way to energy security and sustainability.”

“Our aim is clear: the EU needs to lead the world in accelerating the shift to a low carbon economy,” he added. “We need to do that in a way which keeps Europe competitive in the global marketplace and in a way which increases Europe's security.”

The policy must include “ambitious but credible targets” for further reductions in GHG emissions beyond 2010, to “show our determination to keep leading the fight against climate change (and) give private investors the clarity and confidence to make long term decisions,” he explained. The EU must develop new energy technologies and “pursue this objective more actively and in a more coordinated way.”

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