Increased research spending is the key for Europe

EU Energy Policy: Keeping ahead
Mon, Sep 18, 2006

Increased research spending will be key if Europe is stay a global leader on renewable energy technologies.

Energy policy has never been as high on the European agenda as it is today - and deservedly so. Europe is confronted with enormous challenges regarding the future energy supply and the protection of climate and environment.

But tackling climate change and the dependency on finite fossil energy sources also opens up a huge opportunity for Europe. The necessity to change the current energy production is not a burden but a chance.

If we use solar, wind, biomass, hydro or geothermal energy and more energy efficiency technologies we will not only have the possibility to fulfil the commitments we made in Kyoto.

We will also strengthen a booming, future-oriented branch of industry which has already created around 300,000 jobs in Europe and lists an annual turnover of more than €15bn.

Europe’s leadership in research, technology and implementation in the field of renewable energies contributes to fulfilling the Lisbon Strategy, which aims at turning Europe into the world’s most competitive and dynamic economic area.

The development of wind energy is a special European success story. wind power capacity in the EU has increased also in 2005 - after already enormous booming years - by about 18 per cent to a total of more than 40 giga watts.

Europe is number one in wind energy technologies and the biggest wind energy technology companies are European ones. Research and innovation has reached a price decrease of 50 per cent over the last 15 years.

And Denmark for example, where the share of wind energy is over 20 per cent, shows also that security of supply with wind energy can be achieved. But, without any doubts, to reach a higher share of renewables in every member state a lot of further action is needed.

Still many barriers to renewable energy development exist in most EU countries. And all these barriers are not due to a lack of potential or an upper limit for renewable penetration in to the existing grid.

These barriers are political rather than technical or economical issues. The implementation of the “directive on the promotion of electricity produced from renewable energy sources” in the member states is unfortunately still beyond expectations.

In many countries the development of renewables is only slow growing because of non-favourable support systems for renewable energies over the last years, administrative barriers and grid access problems. Also a level playing field in the overall internal electricity market is far from being a reality.

As a central part of a sustainable energy policy, the EU and its member states must show the political courage and determination in order to send a strong political signal regarding its long-term commitment towards an environmental friendly and increasingly energy-independent society.

The setting of a new ambitious target for 2020 was called for by MEPs last year, now governments and the European commission should agree on an EU-wide mandatory target for renewable energy of up to 25 per cent by 2020 and a long term perspective for 2050.

However, setting targets will not be enough. As part of the comprehensive EU renewable energy strategy, further measures in all sectors involved, electricity, fuels and heating and cooling are necessary.

While we have generally made significant improvements to the expansion and technical development in the electricity sector, the share of renewables in the heating and cooling sector however has been largely stagnant.

Europe needs a new dynamic and a stronger market penetration in the heating and cooling sector, also to reach its 12 per cent renewable energy target by 2010. To tap the full potential of renewable energy for heating and cooling a corresponding directive to boost market penetration is urgently needed.

After the European parliament asked the commission to come forward with such a directive with an own initiative report, Andris Piebalgs announced action at the end of this year.

I expect from this directive that it will stimulate the growth rates for the heating technologies in a similar way as the RES electricity directive did.

Further significant stimulation has to come also from research and technology developments, which will always be very important as technology is the key for the penetration of renewables.

Especially for renewable cooling, a lot of research is still urgently needed, bearing in mind that in a number of countries peak electricity consumption no longer occurs in winter, but in summer.

In June, MEPs voted to dedicate two thirds of the non-nuclear energy research budget to renewable energy and energy efficiency, under the EU’s 7th Framework Programme for Research (FP7).
With this amendment on the energy budget of the FP7, the European parliament took the opportunity to decide on the general direction that energy research policy should take until 2013.

Taking this clear position on research policy now could shape the energy landscape for many years. Two thirds is only a tiny step to reverse decades of unbalanced focus on fossil and nuclear energy research, bearing in mind that more than 60 per cent will still go to nuclear energy.

The decision would open up great opportunities for Europe’s new and innovative high-tech industry and contributes to guarantee and support Europe’s competitiveness on global markets.

Europe is still the frontrunner for renewable energy, however it needs an ambitious policy, effective support systems and intensive research to keep this pole position.