European Commission plans to make energy efficiency measures mandatory
Monday, 19 October 2009 15:16 | 
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According to a draft Communication of the revised Energy Efficiency Action Plan of 2006 called ‘7 measures for 2 million new EU jobs’, the European Commission is planning to make energy-efficiency target legally binding for Member States. The review, which is due to be tabled by the executive body by the end of the year, proposes bringing the target in line with reducing GHGs (greenhouse gas) by 20% by 2020, as agreed in the CARE (climate and renewable energy) package which was adopted last year. This would mean improving energy efficiency by 20% in the same timeframe, with any Member States failing to do so, ultimately punishable.
In order to achieve this goal, the paper proposes several alternatives. Either the targets can be made sector-specific, or they could potentially be limited only to buildings, or they could cover all aspects of the economy. Whichever alternative is chosen, the Commission acknowledges that it is unlikely that energy efficiency will be improved by 20% in the proposed time, saying that the most likely outcome according to current projections, is an improvement of 11%.
It appears that deciding where the targets should apply is not the only loose end to tie up. The Commission is as yet undecided as to whether the best course of action would be to set an absolute cap on emissions by 2020, or whether it would be better to make these savings in relation to the EU’s projected energy consumption. Given that this indecision still remains, the Action Plan will only be finalised once impact assessments are carried out to determine the best options.
The text also goes on to explain that currently the highest priority lies in implementing binding targets for buildings, a sector which is responsible for 40% of Europe’s energy consumption. In this regard, the Commission proposes to refurbish 15 million buildings by 2020, which it estimates would save the EU 66 million tonnes of CO2 and would create 300,000 jobs directly and a further 1.1 million indirectly.
Although progress on binding targets for buildings appears to be more advanced, it has not yet been made clear where the money for this would come from. The text mentions support from the EIB (European Investment Bank) and EBRD (European Bank for Reconstruction and Development) as two possible sources, but no concrete sums are mentioned.
WWF appears dissatisfied with the outcome, claiming the ‘document opens more questions than it answers. There's no doubt that the revision of the Energy Efficiency Action Plan and of the energy conservation policy of the EU is needed, but what we are questioning is the adequacy of this text in comparision to the challenge we have ahead’.
Friends of the Earth were more positive calling it a ‘big step forward since the non-binding target has so far failed to deliver’, but warned that it would be ‘very disappointing if the binding targets are only in line with a 20% emission reduction target for the EU’.
In order to achieve this goal, the paper proposes several alternatives. Either the targets can be made sector-specific, or they could potentially be limited only to buildings, or they could cover all aspects of the economy. Whichever alternative is chosen, the Commission acknowledges that it is unlikely that energy efficiency will be improved by 20% in the proposed time, saying that the most likely outcome according to current projections, is an improvement of 11%.
It appears that deciding where the targets should apply is not the only loose end to tie up. The Commission is as yet undecided as to whether the best course of action would be to set an absolute cap on emissions by 2020, or whether it would be better to make these savings in relation to the EU’s projected energy consumption. Given that this indecision still remains, the Action Plan will only be finalised once impact assessments are carried out to determine the best options.
The text also goes on to explain that currently the highest priority lies in implementing binding targets for buildings, a sector which is responsible for 40% of Europe’s energy consumption. In this regard, the Commission proposes to refurbish 15 million buildings by 2020, which it estimates would save the EU 66 million tonnes of CO2 and would create 300,000 jobs directly and a further 1.1 million indirectly.
Although progress on binding targets for buildings appears to be more advanced, it has not yet been made clear where the money for this would come from. The text mentions support from the EIB (European Investment Bank) and EBRD (European Bank for Reconstruction and Development) as two possible sources, but no concrete sums are mentioned.
WWF appears dissatisfied with the outcome, claiming the ‘document opens more questions than it answers. There's no doubt that the revision of the Energy Efficiency Action Plan and of the energy conservation policy of the EU is needed, but what we are questioning is the adequacy of this text in comparision to the challenge we have ahead’.
Friends of the Earth were more positive calling it a ‘big step forward since the non-binding target has so far failed to deliver’, but warned that it would be ‘very disappointing if the binding targets are only in line with a 20% emission reduction target for the EU’.
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