Page 11 - European Energy Innovation - Summer 2017 publication

Summer 2017 European Energy Innovation
Energy Efficiency: Hunting for
the low-hanging fruits
By Morten Helveg Petersen, MEP,Vice-Chair of the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy
Energy efficiency first! This
is the core principle of the
energy strategy for Europe,
and for the “Clean Energy
for all” package launched by the
Commission by the end of 2016. This
principle acknowledges that Europe’s
biggest domestic energy source is
energy efficiency and highlights the
importance of solutions that take into
account energy savings.
This is the right priority. But it has to stock is still energy inefficient. In other We do not need more capacity to
go hand in hand with ambition, and
in my mind we should be way more
ambitious than the energy efficiency
target of 30% for 2030 as proposed by
the Commission. You cannot call for
ambition and then sit on your hands.
You have to practise what you preach,
and that is why I see it as my job and
a job for the rest of the European
Parliament to make the case for raising
the level of ambition and the binding
energy efficiency target to 40% for 2030. regulation is perhaps not as apparent
As Vice President of the ITRE
committee, rapporteur for the revision
of the ACER regulation, and shadow
www.europeanenergyinnovation.eu
11
ENERGY EFFICIENCY
rapporteur on the revision of the
Energy Performance of Buildings
Directive (EPBD), I am facing the
challenge of strengthening and
translating the energy efficiency
principle into each paragraph of the
eight proposals of the Clean
Energy package.
Buildings account for approx. 38 %
of the overall energy consumption
in the EU and 75% of EU’s buildings
words, buildings are low-hanging
fruits in terms of efficiency and energy
savings. We have to speed up the
process of renovation and further look
into expansion of district heating and
cooling, which would lead to greater
energy efficiency and lower GHG
emissions.
The low-hanging fruits in terms of
energy savings through the ACER
as the energy savings of renovating our
building stock. On paper, it is “just” a
regulation of an agency that facilitates
the cooperation between national
energy regulators. However, the gains
from improving the cross-border
cooperation and the efficient use of the
capacity of the energy network is huge.
We need to use every opportunity
possible to live up to our commitments
from the Paris Agreement and the 2030
EU Climate and Energy framework.
One way of harvesting is by improving
the efficient use of energy generation
capacity. Right now, there are
indications of overcapacity of energy
generation in Europe in spite of
decline in conventional generation
capacity. Numbers from 2015 show
that on average 28% of high-voltage
alternating current interconnector’s
physical capacity is available for
trading in 2015 according to ACER.
In plain English; only a small part of
the physical capacity is actually used,
and this is primarily caused by the
lack of regionally developed capacity
methodology.
generate energy on an EU level.
What we need is to use it better by
at all times using the lowest-cost
capacity and balancing energy cross-
border. Estimates from 2013 show
that a common balancing market
would amount to a gain of 600-900
million euro per year. Although these
numbers may be a bit outdated, they
nevertheless illustrate the clear
benefits of improving the efficient use
of capacity.
To obtain this, we need a well-
functioning market, where clean and
inexpensive energy flow freely across
borders provided and supervised by a
well-functioning Agency (ACER).
By putting efficiency first, other benefits
will follow; cost savings, growth,
thousands of new jobs and healthier
living. Moreover, Europe will be less
dependent on Russian gas and of oil
from the Middle East.
The Clean Energy package is a unique
opportunity in terms of and make all
these benefits realities. Let us go to
work. l