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Enigin News - Europe Target Energy Savings

Enigin News - Europe Target Energy Savings

Europe can cut greenhouse gas emissions by 80% and reduce its energy bill by 350 billion Euros ($476 billion) a year by 2050, if it acts within five years, reported from the European Climate Foundation in Brussels today.

The cost of energy per unit may fall as much as 30% by 2050, due to increased energy efficiency, shifts away from oil and gas power generation and lower exposure of greener industries to carbon prices, according to the report.

“The report reveals many myths are untrue and shows how achievable the renewable energy pathways are,” said Tom Brookes, head of the Energy Strategy Centre at the foundation. “Existing nuclear capacity and fossil fuels will be almost off by 2050. We will have to build new capacity, and at the end of the day it’s a political decision where you direct funding.”

EU Energy Commissioner Guenther Oettinger said he was “encouraged” by the findings of the report.

“The 2050 energy roadmap is a good opportunity for cooperation between European institutions, member states, stakeholders and global partners,” he told a seminar in Brussels today “The stakes are high, the challenge is not only low-carbon society but also leadership in a worldwide industrial race.”

A low-carbon economy faces “profound implementation challenges,” the study said, with spending on new technologies and energy-efficiency measures likely to top 3 trillion Euros over 40 years. The increase in spending needed, to boost the efforts of energy saving will be offset by smaller operating costs from lower fossil fuel requirements and savings from higher energy efficiency.

The Foundation urged the EU to adopt compulsory energy efficiency targets, request long-term targets for renewable-generation technologies, and ensure sufficient financing for low-carbon projects.

EU nations should strengthen energy-efficiency standards for buildings, develop incentives for investing in clean technologies and explore new ways of funding.

The European Commission, the EU’s regulatory arm, is planning to present a package later this year to bolster energy infrastructure, improve cross-border cooperation and attract private financing,

The EU has created the Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators, which next year will start overseeing national authorities and decide on cross-border energy efficient issues.

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Wednesday 14th April 2010