Palacio's plan "a dinosaurs charter"

Loyola de Palacio’s new energy security proposals, adopted today by the Commission, are ‘a dinosaurs charter’, according to Friends of the Earth Europe. The Commission should go back to drawing board and start again.

The so-called ‘security of supply package’ represents an outdated approach to energy policy based on large-scale generation and long-distance transmission that has been disastrous for the environment. These proposals show the Commission continues to pander to the few big energy corporations that seek to consolidate their domination of the continent. They bear scant regard to the need to address climate change and to reduce emissions.

The proposals would also fail in their own terms, as there is no guarantee of an increase in overall competition and no increase in the security of energy supplies. Instead, Europe’s incumbent energy oligopoly will be subsidised to extend its grip on a wider marketplace.

There is too no attempt whatsoever to correct the repeated failure to regulate the long-term decommissioning and other liabilities in the nuclear sector. This omission represents an on-going and substantial market distortion, often with direct state support, and seriously disadvantages all non-nuclear generators.

The proposal on energy efficiency was introduced only at a late stage as, FOE suspects, mere window dressing. Efficiency must instead become central an overall approach to develop a decentralised, renewable and genuinely competitive EU energy sector. At present, any environmental benefit from the efficiency proposal would be more than likely be cancelled out by the gross inefficiencies in expanding large-scale and long-distance infrastructure.

Friends of the Earth condemns the all of the energy security measures, calls on them to be rejected, and calls for new proposals that reflect 21st century thinking about energy.

Friends of the Earth Europe campaigner Mark Johnston says: “Palacio is living in the past. She has learnt little from progressive policies being pursued elsewhere. If these plans go through, it will be a victory for the big, expensive and ugly over the small, efficient and beautiful. Europe energy future can only be secured with a decentralised approach that puts renewables and energy efficiency first and foremost. The Commission must go back to the drawing board and start again.”

Contact: Mark Johnston +44 79 7331 9249 mob

Details of the Commission proposals are available here:
http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guesten.ksh?p_action.gettxt=gt&doc=IP/03/1694|0|RAPID&lg=EN&display=

Friends of the Earth Europe campaigns for sustainable and fair societies and for the protection of the environment,
unites more than 30 national organisations with thousands of local groups and is part of the
world's largest grassroots environmental network, Friends of the Earth International.