Monti rethinks energy sector guidelines

Date: 11/05/2000

By Renée Cordes

COMPETITION Commissioner Mario Monti is reconsidering his approach to planned new guidelines for state aid designed to benefit the environment after some EU governments raised concerns about their impact on the renewables sector.

Monti's proposals for new rules to replace the existing guidelines, which are due to expire at the end of June, have already been held up by numerous delays to Energy Commissioner Loyola de Palacio's plans for measures to boost the use of solar, wind and other clean energy. Although De Palacio's proposals were finally adopted by the full Commission this week, Monti's aides have voiced doubts that the revised state aid guidelines will be ready for publication next month in light of question marks raised over his strategy.

A recent draft of Monti's plan called for state aid to the renewables industry to be cut off after only five years. But this has been fiercely criticised both by member states such as Denmark, Germany and Greece and environmental groups, which claimed it would put firms in the nascent sector at a competitive disadvantage.

The Commissioner has now decided to hold further talks with national experts on the issue next month. "Some member states want us to be more flexible," said one official. "It is important to have a very open debate on this so we avoid any potential misunderstandings."

The move has been welcomed by green campaigners, who feared Monti's original approach would limit the options for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in line with the Union's commitments under the 1997 Kyoto accord. "This is very good news," said Guilio Volpi of the World Wide Fund for Nature. "We called on the Commission to make sure that the new guidelines support renewable energy. Now there is an option for the Commission to revise the strategy and to make sure that renewable energy becomes truly competitive."

Competition Commissioner Mario Monti is reconsidering his approach to planned new guidelines for state aid designed to benefit the environment after some EU governments raised concerns about their impact on the renewables sector.