Luxembourg, 12/06/2014 (Agence Europe) - EU28 environment ministers meeting on Thursday 12 June in Luxembourg said that all sectors, ETS and non-ETS, should contribute as much as they can to emissions reduction targets by 2030 and that the EIB and structural funds must help fund the investment required. Countries from the expanded Visegrad group also appealed for the setting up of a new compensation fund for low-income countries that have already made considerable emissions reduction efforts. This second debate on the Energy/Climate 2030 package enabled all the member states to set out their respective national sectors that have significant potential for reducing emissions and their wishes for the most appropriate European policies and instruments to fund investment needs.
Yiannis Maniatis, Council chairman, summarised the situation: “We have had a very interesting exchange regarding the impact of our future commitments. Industry, agriculture and transport must contribute. The different sectors can contribute but this depends on the parameters and particularities of the member states”. The conclusions from this debate and those from the Energy Council on Friday 13 June, will be forwarded as the contribution to the European Council on 26-27 June. Connie Hedegaard pointed out that “the Commission sent each member state figures based on our impact analysis”. She also said that there would be bilateral discussions from the 18 to 20 June and that, thereafter, “we will have an overview… for dividing up the efforts made. It is important to know which has the best potential for reducing emissions and promoting energy efficiency. For funding, there will be the EIB and structural funds but will we be able to envisage solidarity?” This is what prevailed at the Climate/Energy package until 2020. Germany indicated that it would like to launch structural reforms of the ETS early, in 2017. Maniatis informed the press that “the EU must stick to what is planned but, if some states want to move earlier, it will facilitate burden sharing”. (AN)