Page 15 - European Energy Innovation - winter 2017 publication

Winter 2017 European Energy Innovation 15
As discussions progress on the
file (and at the time of writing, we
are deep in the ITRE committee
negotiations), two things are
evident: there are vastly diverging
approaches between the different
groups of the European Parliament,
but, more positively, there is a
common willingness to get a strong
compromise that sends the right signal
to the renewable energy industry. As
President Juncker has reiterated on
a number of occasions, our goal in
Europe is to be the world leader in
Renewable Energy. This means that not
only should we have a higher share
of renewables in our energy mix than
the rest of the world, but also that we
should manufacture more renewable
energy technologies, that we should
drive the R&D agenda to develop
more innovative new technologies,
and that renewable technologies are
advanced to the stage at which they
can compete with fossil fuels in the
energy market. The Renewable Energy
Directive is an important part of how
we can do this.
The debate around the targets is well
documented by now, and it is indeed
an important one. It is increasingly
clear that the final result will see
the ambition levels raised from the
October 2014 Council Conclusions
agreement on 27%. There is a lot of
debate still to be had in the coming
months, especially as we move into
trilogues. To me, if we land on a
target of around 30%, I think it would
be both positive and pragmatic. It is
important that we give the signal to
drive investments, but we must also
consider the impact on energy prices
that large increases in support for
Renewables will bring. We should
ensure, therefore, that the transition to opposition to onshore wind, for
renewables goes hand-in-hand with
maintaining EU competitiveness. To
me, finding the right balance between
being ambitious on targets on the one
hand, and keeping policy costs down
as much as possible on the other is
important to keep a positive public
perception of renewable energy.
www.europeanenergyinnovation.eu
RENEWABLES PARLIAMENT AGENDA
However, we should also remember
that the costs of renewables are falling. in many Member States and it is our
Falling technology costs mean that it is
much cheaper to meet the 27% target
than it was assumed to be even when
the numbers were crunched ahead of
the Commission proposal. Using more
updated assumptions for technology
costs, achieving the 27% target could
be up to €3 bn cheaper than we
thought; we should ensure that the
level of investment remains at least the
same, and so a target of 30% or more
should be very attainable.
It is easy, of course, to be caught in
the trap of thinking the Renewable
Energy Directive is just about targets
– it isn’t. The different parts of the
Directive are equally important to
increase deployment, and the text
that Parliament is in the process of
formulating will certainly help to boost
renewables and possibly even lead us
to overshoot the targets.
Take our text on support schemes, for
example. Parliament lays out clearly
that, aside from some exemptions,
support to renewable energy
installations should be granted
through a competitive bidding
process. Such competitive systems
are proven to drive down the cost of
renewables – take the recent extremely
low strike prices for offshore wind
observed in Denmark and Germany,
for example. Additionally, our text will
give help to incentivise renewable self-
consumption and the development of
Renewable Energy communities.
The best way to get more and more
renewables in the system is to allow
people to make money from it, and
in my own country, we see strong
example. Making it easier for citizens
to own a share of the installations and
profit from them will help enormously
with public acceptance. Additionally,
Parliament will put forward a number
of proposals aimed at shortening the
approval processes for renewable
energy projects. Such processes can
be extremely slow and complicated
view that simplifying and streamlining
can help reduce the perceived risk for
investors in renewable energy projects.
A short final remark on sustainability.
We must be careful not to legislate
against the tools we need to achieve
both our Renewable Energy targets,
and indeed the 40% 2030 reduction
target. Our overall aim must be to
reduce emissions, and in the energy
sector, this means cutting emissions
from fossil fuels. The biofuels debate
is one that highlights this problem
well. The Parliament’s Environment
Committee recently voted to phase
out conventional biofuels completely.
This debate is an emotive one, but we
cannot tar all conventional biofuels
with the same brush.
Sustainable European biofuels made
from crops grown by European
farmers should not be considered
in the same way as Palm oil from
the Far East – biofuels can make a
significant contribution to targets
and greenhouse gas reductions,
particularly in the short-term, by
reducing the amount of fossil fuels we
burn. Additionally, if we continue to
impose such regulatory uncertainty
on the biofuels sector, it is unlikely
that the needed investments will be
made in the development of advanced
biofuels. I hope for a sensible solution
on this topic as me move forward with
the discussions.
In conclusion, it is important to note
that Parliament is only half the battle
on the Renewable Energy Directive.
I look forward to working with my
colleague José Blanco Lopez, the
other shadow rapporteurs, and indeed
the incoming Bulgarian Presidency,
when we head to trilogues. We hope
to finalise the process sometime in the
third quarter of 2018 so that Europe
can move forward with certainty
and consistency and fulfil President
Juncker’s aim that the EU would be the
global leader in Renewable Energy. l