EC Invests €9B in Energy Projects under Cohesion Policy

February 21, 2008 // Published as a news service by IHS

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The European Commission (EC) will invest nearly €9 billion to develop renewable energy and improve energy efficiency in European Union (EU) regions as part of the EU's cohesion policy for 2007-2013.

The EC will act as facilitator by supporting member states in making timely energy investments and promoting the sharing of know-how among EU regions.

The EC's proposals on climate change action, launched on Jan. 23, give high priority to renewable energy and the need for better energy efficiency.

"The regions are essential in reaching ambitious goals in the energy sector through judicious cohesion policy investment. I am impressed with the imagination that has gone into local initiatives already up and running - they are good examples for others," said Danuta Hübner, EC commissioner for regional policy.

"And I see huge potential for creating sustainable jobs and growth through devising innovative technologies that help reduce our car on footprint. The sooner regions act, the sooner they can benefit from a low-carbon lifestyle," Hübner added.

The 450 operational programmes for the EU's cohesion policy for 2007-2013 include investments totalling nearly €9 billion for energy-related projects - €4.8 billion for renewable energies plus €4.2 billion for energy efficiency and energy management measures.

There is also €63.8 billion to support research and development, a significant portion of which the EC would like to go towards projects that stimulate research on renewable energy.

In parallel with this, the EC will help member states reach their renewable energy targets and speed up programme implementation. It will also encourage the sharing of experiences and best practices, particularly through the "regions for economic change" initiative. Three strands noted in this initiative include:

• Moving to a low-carbon economy.
• Developing sustainable and energy-efficient housing.
• Achieving sustainable urban development.

Many regions in Europe are pioneering these developments and technologies, but an essential feature of renewable energies and energy efficiency is that most of the development is done in peripheral regions. Hübner presented some case studies as examples other regions may like to follow:

France's unique carbon evaluation tool
France is committed to a "low-carbon economy" and developed a unique carbon evaluation tool to monitor CO2 emissions produced by all projects funded with EU support. France will apply this carbon evaluation tool to investments in the framework of cohesion policy co-funded operational programmes.

By assessing the carbon contribution of each project investment, the tool will support the decision-making process as well as facilitate the continuous monitoring of carbon neutrality. France believes this approach will help achieve its commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 75% by the year 2050.

Italy's ambitious energy front
Italy is very dependent on imports of traditional sources of energy. This is why the country has committed to develop new solutions, notably through the cohesion policy, to the tune of €1.057 billion. A specific priority on sustainable energy has been included in all Italian programmes.

The programme for the southern regions specifically tackles innovation and sustainable energy. Italy, Poland and the Czech Republic are in the lead among EU member states for investments earmarked to promote renewable energy.

Samsø of Denmark - a pioneer in energy self-efficiency
Since Samsø Island started its ambitious plan to become a renewable energy island in 1997, it has become a showcase. The island has acquired experience with wind turbines, neutral CO2, renewable energy district heating plants, rapeseed oil tractors and solar energy panels.

Samsø's offshore wind turbines now produce more energy than is used in the island's transport. The Samsø Energy Academy helps exchange experiences and scientific work with visitors and researchers.

Energy 4 cohesion project - networking of regions
This project, supported by the Intelligent Energy-Europe (IEE) programme, was launched in early 2006. The aim is to promote renewable energies in less developed rural areas with support from the cohesion policy for 2007-2013.

The project consortium includes 12 companies and institutes from 11 different member states (Germany, Belgium, Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, Estonia, Slovak Republic, Lithuania, Latvia, Italy and Greece). The objective is to develop "master plans" for pilot projects related to renewable energies in eight target regions and to disseminate results throughout Europe.

Interreg III
This European Community initiative aims to stimulate interregional cooperation in the EU. Two projects of note include:

• REGIOSUSTAIN- Fourteen partners from five member states (Austria, Czech Republic, Germany, Poland and Slovenia) are co-operating on biomass for energy production by establishing an expert network, promoting structural change in rural areas, providing alternative sources of income and using the existing energy potential in agriculture and forestry.

• CHANGELAB - Cooperation among seven member states (Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Netherlands, Sweden and the U.K.) illustrates the need to work on the lifestyle and attitude of consumers to achieve effective regional strategies for sustainable consumption and development.

For more information, see the EU web site on Regional Policy.

Source: European Commission.