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Post an EU jobAfter weeks of wrangling, EU lawmakers and member-state representatives have struck an agreement on a €5 billion European recovery plan, which will include substantial funding for energy projects considered vital to Europe's security of supply.
On 28 January, the European Commission proposed to reallocate five billion euros of unspent 2008 EU agricultural funding, mostly to support clean coal projects, offshore wind farms and the deployment of broadband Internet connections in rural areas (EurActiv 29/01/09).
Under the plans, a total of €3.5 billion (later increased to €3.98 billion) would be devoted to clean energy projects, while €1 billion will support broadband Internet. A further €500 million is earmarked for tackling new agricultural challenges, such as climate change, renewable energy, water management and restructuring in the dairy sector.
EU countries attacked the Commission's plan for a variety of reasons. Some Western countries complained that projects for "smart cities" had been dropped, while Bulgaria, the country worst hit by the recent gas crisis, found its own modest allocation "abnormal" (EurActiv 04/02/09). An agreement was finally clinched at the March 2009 EU summit in Brussels (EurActiv 20/03/09).
Some MEPs nevertheless strongly criticised the plan for leaving out energy-efficiency measures. The Parliament's industry committee adopted a report calling for money not committed before September 2010 to be redirected to energy efficiency and renewable energy projects (EurActiv 02/04/09).
At their meeting yesterday (16 April), the Czech EU Presidency and the Parliament's negotiators endorsed the list of eligible projects agreed by EU heads of state and government in March (EurActiv 20/03/09).
The plan, which initially reserved funds for flagship initiatives on offshore wind or the Nabucco gas pipeline, will now also be open to energy-efficiency measures, meeting one of the key demands from MEPs.
The plan's revised version allocates €3.98 billion to energy projects designed to stimulate job creation, help the EU out of recession and strengthen the bloc's energy independence.
It includes €2.35bn for gas and electricity interconnections, €0.565bn for offshore wind and €1.05bn for carbon capture and storage (CCS) demonstration plants.
The Parliament had threatened to derail the agreement as the plan agreed by EU leaders in March had omitted energy efficiency and smart cities from the deal (EurActiv 02/04/09).
MEPs in the Parliament's industry committee demanded that money not committed before 1 September should be redirected to finance energy-efficiency and renewable energy measures, while member states wanted to see any unused funds returned to their budgets.
The final compromise reflects MEPs' views, as it allows the Commission to propose the use of recovery money that is not committed by the end of 2010 for energy-efficiency and renewables projects. However, the EU executive will only be able to do this if it can show that there are "serious risks in implementing the priority projects". A progress report in March 2010 will determine whether such risks exist.
Separately, the Commission will also announce further measures to support energy efficiency and renewable energy, including the revision of the Energy Efficiency Action Plan by end of October 2009 and a public-private partnership on energy-efficient buildings before the Parliament votes on the compromise, the EU's co-legislator said.
The compromise will now have to be endorsed by ambassadors of EU governments next week, as well as the full Parliament on 4-7 May.
A Czech EU Presidency source said member states could still rule out the channelling of unused funds into energy efficiency and instead request their return to their own coffers, Reuters reported.
(16 April 2009) [FR]
(20 March 2009)
(28 January 2009) [FR]
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