Security of energy supply
Resolution adopted by the Energy Committee of European Parliament for next European Council's Spring Summit
Following the European Parliament Energy Committee's vote, Green MEP Claude Turmes said:
"The European Parliament Energy committee's vote should inspire both EU Ministers and the Commission in putting together their ideas for a coherent EU energy policy. Making energy efficiency the priority of the priorities, working on transport to reduce the oil dependency and continuing vigorously the development of renewable energies for all sectors (electricity, fuels, heating and cooling): that is the future"
As well as the Lisbon Agenda, energy will be a major item at the forthcoming March 2006 Spring Summit of EU Heads of state and governments. The European Parliament (EP) is obviously keen to having a say on it, and in particular through its energy committee.
On 21 February 2006, thanks to the Greens, this committee adopted a 9-pages-text (pdf) which turned to be eventually focused on energy savings and renewables rather than on nuclear and clean coal. It was not an easy task!
Indeed, the original draft resolution (pdf) on security of supply of energy as written by the conservative UK MEP Giles Chichester (a well known pro-nuclear and anti-renewables person) was a catastrophic piece of paper promoting nuclear and clean coal as solutions to the EU security of supply of energy. The Greens/Efa group in the EP managed however to get important amendments adopted. This was due to a coalition of political groups (composed of socialists, liberals, communists and greens) which were able to defeat the conservative forces (EPP-ED), the biggest political group in the EP.
The next EP's step will be to vote a resolution in Plenary Session on 22 March 2006.
Be sure that it will be a very hot moment!
