The global energy system is undergoing a structural
crisis. At its heart lies the need to restrain climatic change while at the same
time dealing with energy security in an era of rapidly growing demand. The
widening gap between rising demand for energy and limited resources of oil and
gas has, together with speculation, increased fuel prices to record levels. This
in turn has raised the spectre of a recession. These combined challenges pose a
significant threat to international economic and political stability.
The current make-up of the European Union, with its
flagging institutional reform owing to the Irish No vote, is ill-equipped to
deal with these challenges. An outdated Nice treaty that does not reflect the
new realities of an EU with 27 members is impeding effective decision-making,
thereby undermining the EU's role in a rapidly changing international system
that is increasingly being shaped by rising powers such as China, India and
Russia. The urgency for institutional reform is quite clear to everyone.
Nevertheless, in times like these the EU cannot limit itself to institutional
reform alone.
What is needed is a new European Community that
can successfully tackle the combined challenges of climate change, energy
security and sustainable competitiveness. As the former Commission president
Jacques Delors has suggested, the EU needs to build an institution that can
facilitate common action in this field. In comparison with the formative years
of the Community - when both the European Coal and Steel Community and the
European Atomic Energy Community pursued energy-oriented goals - there is a lack of common action to expand the use of renewable
energy that mitigates climate change, provides energy security and increases
European competitiveness by transforming its economy into an energy-efficient
system.
At a time of climate change and escalating energy
prices, the EU needs a European Community for Renewable Energy (ERENE) that can
overcome our dependence on fossil fuels and meet the energy challenges of the
new century. Such a community would create the conditions necessary to take full
advantage of the EU's climatic, geological and hydrological diversity. Thanks to
this diversity the EU has the potential to meet its total electricity demand
with renewable energy.
This visionary goal, however, cannot be achieved by
unco-ordinated individual action by member states alone. ERENE would develop a
strategy to facilitate common action for a rapid shift to renewable energy in
the electricity sector. Funded by revenue from the European Emissions Trading
Scheme, it would support the research, development and dissemination of new
technologies, establish innovative pilot projects, promote investments in
renewable energy through a common European support scheme and contribute to the
development of trans-European smart grids for the integration of renewable
energy into the EU's electricity supply. It would also foster co-operation with
non-EU states, particularly those with a large solar potential in the southern
Mediterranean.
ERENE could be based either on the provisions for
enhanced co-operation between member states under the aegis of the EU, or on a
separate treaty. It would help the EU to achieve its climate and energy
objectives of reducing greenhouse gases by 20 per cent and reaching a target of
20 per cent renewable energy by 2020. Moreover, it would prepare the ground for
long-term targets beyond 2020. In addition, ERENE would boost the EU's
competitiveness by supporting technological development and
innovation.
The EU can, by creating ERENE, become a technological
leader, facilitate the creation of new "green-collar" jobs, insulate its economy
from rising energy prices and be an example in the fight against climate change
for the rest of the world. As such, ERENE could, after the creation of a common
internal market and a common currency, be a great new integration project for
Europe, emphasising the vital importance of common action for Europe's future
and ensuring that the instruments to deal with climate change and energy
security are put in place. The EU needs another grand project to regain
political momentum and to engage its citizens in a common European modernisation
effort.
Michaele Schreyer is the former EU commissioner for
budget (1999-2004); Ralf Fuecks is co-president of the Heinrich Böll Foundation,
a think-tank and policy network affiliated with the German Greens. This article first appeared in The Financial Times on July 10 2008 and is republished here with the Mr Fuecks's kind permission.
Related materials from the Atlantic Community:
- Parag Khanna and Alpo Russi: Europe's Century
- Frank-Walter Steinmeier and David Miliband: Addressing the Emerging Challenges of Climate Change
- Samuel Thernstrom: Resetting Earth's Thermostat
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August 2, 2008
Jan-Friedrich Kallmorgen, Atlantic Initiative, Silver Contributor (35)
What would be the next step to set up ERENE? Should one really rely on governments or EU institutions to take the lead at this great project? I don't believe so. This task requires big, generous thinking, not a new bureaucracy. While the EU should set the right framework and gives incentives, political entrepreneurship is needed.
Civil society actors should join forces with scientist, business and venture capital to develop a strategy with a road map and concrete milestones. A model could be the Clinton Global Initiative where organisations as private individuals commit themselves publicly to certain contributions to a plan. And as one can expect green technology to generate significant revenues there is also a long-term business case to be made.
Finally, I agree that this should be a European enterprise, but one should also look across the Atlantic, particularly to Silicon Valley, for ideas, networks and money. Maybe, the American Jeremy Rifkin and his "Third Industrial Revolution" also approach fits in here.
Looking forward to continuing this debate, Jan