Greens: EU energy policy won’t work

Energy policy conclusions to be agreed by EU governments this week ­contradict earlier energy priorities and will not work, according to the European Greens.

A meeting of EU leaders today and tomorrow (8-9 March) is expected to give political support to an EU energy strategy published by the European Commission in January.

But Green MEPs say that ministers are ­ignoring a 2006 Commission action plan to increase ­energy efficiency.

"When we started these energy discussions," said German Green MEP ­Rebecca Harms, "the target was to bring down European energy consumption. Now the basic assumption is that consumption will grow."

Claude Turmes, vice-­president of the Green group, warned that "to hit the 2020 [greenhouse gas] targets we need to concentrate two-thirds of our efforts on ­energy efficiency. In the ­conclusions, efficiency just gets one paragraph".

Governments will agree to cut EU greenhouse gas emission 20% by 2020 and increase the use of renewable energy 20% in the same period. Turmes said that the renewables target would not work unless it was broken into sector-specific targets, including emission reductions for transport, buildings, heating and cooling.

National governments are reluctant to cede control over how energy targets will be met by agreeing to an EU-wide sectoral approach.

A spokesman for the German presidency said the Greens were confusing the issue. "There are only two things still up for debate at the summit: unbundling the energy market and whether or not the renewables target will be binding," he said. "Talking about sectoral targets at this stage would just open up yet another field of discussion in an already detailed and elaborate plan."

Energy policy conclusions to be agreed by EU governments this week ­contradict earlier energy priorities and will not work, according to the European Greens.