EGEC commenting on new EU report on “Energy Union”

EGEC, being one of the most outspoken bodies in Europe for the development of geothermal, comments on todays’s European Commission publication: “Framework strategy for a resilient Energy Union with a forward-looking climate change policy”.

The following are the comments from EGEC:

EGEC-AEBIOM- ESTIF reaction  available here.

EGEC regrets that the Commission’s proposal

• Lacks reference on renewables for heating and cooling to improve security of supply;
• Fails to see the synergies between energy efficiency and renewable energy, notably in the building sector;
• Fails to propose a strong, separate and governance for renewables and energy efficiency to  ensure consistency and comparability of Member States’ policies;
• Fails to recognise that the internal energy market cannot be complete if only based on electricity and gas. A true internal energy market should cover heating as well.

However, we welcome the Commission’s announcement of new legislation for renewable energy, which should cover electricity as well as heating and the commitment to develop the next generation of renewable energy technologies.

For a successful Energy Union, we strongly believe that it should include the following additional action points:

• The swift phase-out of fossil fuels, for example in 2012 the gas sector was still flooded with €6.5 bn in subsidies;
• The need for the announced Heat Strategy to address both energy efficiency and renewable energy sources which are complementary, and to include an appropriate balance of policies for the renewable energy  demand and supply;
• The financing of consumers’ higher upfront investment should also encompass the fuel switch to renewables in buildings.

On this same topic Renewable Energy World has also published their view on the topic. To read their take, please follow this link

Source: EGEC & Renewable Energy World