Brussels, 26/09/2008 (Agence Europe) - Although it did not publish any formal conclusions on the sustainable production and consumption action plan (the counterpart of the energy and climate package), the 26 September 2008 Competitiveness Council gave the action plan its backing in the form of a contribution to the conclusions document to be adopted by the 20 October 2008 Environment Council. The ministers discussed the impact of the energy and climate package on EU competitiveness and energy prices, based on a document submitted by Poland, where coal accounts for 95% of electricity generation and there are fears of a sharp rise in electricity prices.
Consensus emerged over the action plan in terms of the need to provide better public information about the environmental impact of products; moving towards a low carbon economy while preserving the competitiveness of EU companies; paying particular attention to small and medium-sized enterprises; introducing incentives to boost eco-efficiency; and basing all action on the right balance between voluntary measures and regulations, respecting the principle of subsidiarity.
As far as French industry and consumer affairs secretary of state Luc Chatel was concerned (who chaired the Council meeting), it had been an intense, animated and fascinating debate revealing a shared desire among EU member states for the EU to be a world leader and a pioneer in the fight against climate change. He said the Council was certain that it was a real opportunity for EU industry because it was from innovation and R&D in EU industry that tomorrow's environmental solutions would emerge and this was a growth opportunity for EU economies. At a press conference, Chatel admitted that the energy and climate package he was closely involved with was giving rise to what he described as 'legitimate concerns' because it would have an impact on EU competitiveness. He said he had pointed out that the French Presidency of the EU wanted agreement to be reached on the energy and climate package but had also introduced proposals to ensure that, through the border exchange mechanism and free emissions quotas, the question of competitiveness and competitiveness gaps in EU industry could be incorporated.
Chatel welcomed the conclusions document of the EU ministerial meeting on public tender (see EUROPE 9748) as a contribution to the action plan because EU public markets account for 16% of GDP and the choices made by public decision-makers had a considerable impact on the environment.
What about Poland's fear of rising electricity costs (backed mainly by Romania but Bulgaria, Estonia, Greece and Cyprus also express concerns)? Chatel said the concern had to be integrated and it had emerged that the climate change package's priority had to remain in place. He said there were negotiations to be carried out in order to take account of the various demands of the member states. EU Industry Commissioner Günter Verheugen welcomed the fact that the big sustainable production plan had received broad backing from the member states. On the discussion on the repercussions of the energy and climate package and the impact of rising oil prices on the EU economy, and the burden borne by Poland, Verheugen said the Commission wanted to (and had to) find a solution for highly energy-intensive industries in the EU that were highly exposed to competition and carbon losses after 2012. He said the aim was to provide companies with legal certainty because many captains of industry had told the Commission that they had postponed their investment decisions and were deciding to re-locate outside the EU because it was difficult to calculate costs post-2012. For this reason, he said, the Commission was working flat-out on identifying industries and possible benchmarks. It was not ready to submit any proposals to the Council but one thing was clear, he said, namely that the available working document noted that in serious cases, it would be possible to grant 100% free quotas for companies using state-of-the-art technologies, and he wanted this rule to apply as soon as the energy and climate package was adopted to head off the risk of lack of international agreement on the post-2012 situation. But he said the priority remained a binding international agreement or sector-specific agreements. Verheugen said that the debate at the Competitiveness Council had shown a determination to stick to the climate and energy package targets but to take greater account of competitiveness issues in the light of the ever worsening economic situation.
The day before the Competitiveness Council, EU Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas assured Polish Environment Minister Maciej Nowicki that he had listened to his concerns and the European Commission was working to find solutions for all member states having problems with the collective target of a 20% cut in greenhouse gas emissions by 2020. However, he said there was no way the EU plan to combat global warming would be changed given the permanent nature of the climate change crisis vis-a-vis the passing nature of economic crises. (A.N./transl.fl)