Brussels, 01/02/2012 (Agence Europe) - The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) has delivered an energetic defence of the energy community project that is so close to the heart of former Commission President Jacques Delors. In addition to an opinion on 18 January (see EUROPE 10536), the EESC, a consultative body which represents civil society in the EU, supported the project before European political decision-makers and stakeholders at a conference it organised jointly with the think-tank Notre Europe in Brussels on 3i January.
“We are dismayed by the slow progress on developing the internal gas and electricity market. The time has come to put forward a daring proposal for the European Single Energy Market and the creation of a European Energy Community”, said EESC President Staffan Nilsson, opening the conference on Tuesday. The EESC calls for a joint approach to energy production, transmission and consumption. “It is a matter of necessity. Going it alone is no longer an option, as this pushes energy prices up, jeopardises supply security and does nothing to get us closer to the low-carbon society we are aiming to achieve”, added Stéphane Buffetaut, who heads EESC's section for transport, energy, infrastructure and the information society. “The EU, the member states and all involved would let citizens down if they did not tackle these challenges in a spirit of solidarity and responsibility”, argued EESC Vice-President Anna-Maria Darmanin, adding that this should ideally be done within a European energy community. This was an idea shared by new European Parliament President Martin Schulz (Germany), in that such a community would smooth the way for the EU in its transition towards being a low-carbon economy, while helping to create new jobs and increase growth.
In coming years, greater emphasis would be placed on common infrastructure projects, promised Energy Commissioner Günther Oettinger. This is a move which would help bind together Europe's hitherto separate “energy islands”, added Jerzy Buzek, who, when he was president of the European Parliament, strongly supported Delors' idea of an energy community. Oettinger struck a cautious note, however, when he pointed out that some of the EESC's proposals might not be feasible under the current treaty. “Although the Lisbon Treaty has extended the EU's powers in the energy field, some of the key decisions such as the energy mix remain in national hands”, he noted.
In its opinion of 18 January, the EESC backed Delors' idea of creating “a European gas purchasing group” to strengthen the bargaining power of member states and companies. He suggested establishing a common supply structure for gas and other fuels, which would ensure consistency in negotiations and help to reduce prices. Schulz said that integration within the EU should help secure Europe's external energy supplies. For Buzek, common purchasing power could go a long way towards preventing internal tensions between member states.
In a written message to the conference, Energy policy needs more Europe, Delors highlighted the importance of a European Energy Community for “setting up an EU-wide coherent, integrate energy regulation area and meeting energy, environmental technological, geopolitical and security challenges” through an approach that would put in place more competition, cooperation and solidarity. “Integration of markets, coordination of research policies, directing investment decisions, creating solidarity mechanisms and the need to speak as one on the international scene all require a powerful, supranational approach. While a common energy policy of this sort will not happen overnight, Europe cannot afford itself the luxury of delaying”, he stressed, highlighting the need now “to lay down solid foundations which go from greater integration of national energy markets to joint network planning centring energy policy on consumers and a gradual 'Europeanisation' of the energy mix with a view, for example, to increasing the percentage of renewable energy in each country's mix”. Delors also highlighted the European Energy Community's potential for boosting the legitimacy of the European integration process in the eyes of the public. “Gradual development could very well galvanise the support of European citizens for a project which, they can see, offers clear added value and, above all, which will meet their expectations and address their concerns”, he said, supporting the EESC idea of setting up a European civil society forum.
“In energy, purely national action no longer has any relevance. It is at European level that we will be best able to shape a sustainable and forward-looking energy system”, he concluded. (EH/transl.rt)