Brussels, 15/10/2008 (Agence Europe) - In addition to the conclusions, the European Council is due to adopt, on 16 October, a report by the French presidency on energy security. Elaborated at the demand of Heads of state and governments, which observed, during their special summit on 1 September, that the recent Russian-Georgian conflict illustrated the need for Europe to increase its efforts regarding energy security supplies, this report tackles the two-fold perspective of solidarity and responsibility, the six energy security pillar: energy efficiency, energy sources diversity, visibility of energy supply and demand, solidarity mechanisms, infrastructure and external chapter. It is proposing action for the short term by the European Commission, Council and member states. Endorsed on 10 October by the Energy Council, this energy security report precedes the much awaited 2nd strategic energy analysis that the Commission is due to publish on 4 November.
In a chapter on energy efficiency, the “first priority” according to the presidency, the European Council is calling for the 25 recommendation from the report to be taken into account on the best practices established by the International Energy Agency (IEA) at the request of the G8 for supporting the implementation of the energy action plan adopted at the end of 2006 and which aims to reduce the EU's energy consumption by 2020 by 20%. The European Council is also requesting adoption by the end of the year of demanding specifications for several categories of electrical apparatus, including domestic lightening over the next three years for more than twenty categories of products. It is also urging revision, for adoption before the end of 2009, of the directives on eco-design of products and energy labelling. It is calling on the Commission to propose revision in November of the directive on building energy performance, by setting a higher level of ambition, particularly for new buildings. The European Council is also requesting that the Commission and Council swiftly explore actions to take to make national plans on the energy efficiency directive for final use more operational and user-friendly. The Commission is also invited to present a report in November to help assess the contribution of cogeneration to the energy efficiency objectives. The European Council is calling on the Commission to determine, in cooperation with the EIB, the most appropriate financial instruments for supporting projects in the energy efficiency domain.
In a chapter on energy source diversity, the European Council calls for the SET-Plan (strategic plan for energy technologies) to be speeded up through a robust mobilisation from member states and the business community so that the decisions needed for starting these initiatives, including those for demonstration projects are taken in 2009. It also calls on the Commission to present its communication by the beginning of 2009 on the funding of low-carbon technologies to identify all instruments that could help encourage investment in these technologies. The European Council is calling on the Council and Commission to identify necessary funding, in addition to private sector investment, for panned implementation in 2015, of 12 carbon sequestration demonstrators. If underlines the urgency of implementing, on the basis of the work by a high level group, of a European framework on nuclear safety, and to progress towards the definition of a safe and sustainable solution for managing radioactive and combustible waste. It is also encouraging the continuation of discussions at the European nuclear energy forum, by involving all stakeholders in a far reaching discussion on the challenges of the nuclear energy industry.
Visibility of energy supply and demand. The Council is calling on the Commission, which will propose legislative measures in mid-November to facilitate the weekly publication of commercial oil stocks, to ask business leaders by the end of 2008, to push through with the adoption of measures for implementing this regulation by taking the initiative to publish, in a voluntary way, European commercial stocks each week. It is also calling on the Commission to present concrete proposals for improving the transparency of flows, demand and the level of gas stocks. In additional to these measures, the European Council considers that the Commission, whose energy observatory is already providing detailed elements about member state production and consumption, should be set up for oil, gas and electricity balance sheets based on data for each country. It also calls on the Commission to submit an initial prospective report before the end of 2008 on the needs and energy supplies in member states and to submit modalities for organising a European forum, which in the first half of 2009, will bring together the private sector to debate supply and demand perspectives and infrastructure forecasts.
Solidarity mechanisms: the European Council calls on the Commission to propose adjustments in November to make the two mechanisms in Community legislation on oil stocks more coherent, as well as the similar IEA mechanism, which certain EU member states are subject. It is also calling on the Commission to present concrete suggestions to establish a solidarity mechanism based on the capacity of each member state to produce security margins, as part of the revision framework on the gas supply security directive that it will be proposing in 2009. The Commission is also expected to begin a reflection in 2009 with several member states at the gas coordination group on all the structural and technical measures for strengthening gas supply security.
In a chapter on infrastructure, the European Council calls on the Commission to present orientations in November for updating and strengthening Trans-European Energy Transport Networks. Faced with the sluggishness of completing these priority interconnection projects, it is calling on the Commission to present a report identifying the interconnection problems, propose action for rectifying it and establishing a work calendar for a first debate before the end of the year. It underlines the need for proposing concrete action to improve the interconnection of the Baltic states with their European neighbours, to continue the completion of the Mediterranean electric and gas ring, to establish electric and gas connections between central European and South East Europe (through the Energy Community) and to deepen the work needed for completing the southern gas corridor. It is also calling for a conference to be held on the interconnections that could be held in the first half of 2009 to enable a broad exchange between public and private decision makers, particularly the regulators. Finally, the European Council invites the Commission to present a natural liquid gas action plan for the first half of 2009. it also highlights the need to integrate renewables safely and reliably into the European network, particularly big future capacities for offshore wind energy.
Lastly, in a chapter on external energy relations, the European Council emphasises dialogue/cooperation with third countries to increase political impetus. It calls, in particular, on the Commission, which, in its 2nd strategic review, will give a region-by-region assessment of progress since the adoption of the joint Energy for Europe strategy in March 2007, to identify, by the end of the year, those countries on which the EU should concentrate its efforts in terms of diversification of energy sources and supply routes. Particular attention should be given, it says to the energy partnership with Africa. The Council also plans to hold a high-level meeting with the countries of the Caspian region and transit countries in spring 2009. Furthermore, to promote energy efficiency worldwide, the European Council calls for the immediate setting up of the secretariat of the International Partnership for Cooperation in Energy Efficiency launched in June 2008 by the enlarged G8. Lastly, the European Council calls on the Council and Commission to continue talks on enlarging the energy community to the east of Europe. (E.H./transl.rh)