EU Presidency Statement - United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development/Intergovernmental Preparatory Meeting: Energy for Sustainable Development

• Energy has moved up on the international agenda due to high and fluctuating energy prices, increasing global demand for energy and uncertainty regarding sources and security of supply. Furthermore the increasing use of energy with the present global energy mix will inevitably lead to increases in emissions of green house gasses and is closely related to climate changes.

• However, access to affordable, reliable and sustainable supply of energy services is crucial to facilitate growth and development and is therefore a particular challenge for the billions without access to modern energy services. Providing access is particular beneficial to the health of women and children. This is not just a challenge for the poor but for all of us.

• As a consequence there is a serious need for global efforts in guiding investments, technology transfer and decisions regarding the energy sector. The common aim must be to ensure sustained growth and development for all countries without adversely affecting the global environment and at the same time increase security of energy supply by diversifying sources of supply. Efforts in that direction will help reduce energy related conflicts.

• The EU calls for increased engagement of countries at the regional level, to give high priority to access to energy services in development plans, with international support for such regional activities as efforts to interconnect national power grids and enhance also decentralised systems in rural areas. Participatory process should be used to actively involve women in the design, selection, promotion and use of energy resources and technology.

• The EU believes that the CSD should recommend that all States adopt and develop time-bound national and regional targets and commitments to increase energy efficiency and the share of renewable energies in energy supply and consumption, as well as targets on access to energy. These objectives should be integrated into national sustainable development strategies, national poverty reduction strategies or other national planning frameworks as well as into the development cooperation strategies by 2010, giving priority - and allocating adequate resources - to energy efficiency, renewable energies and improved access to sustainable, reliable, affordable and environmentally sound energy services for all as one of the prerequisites for reaching the MDGs. Such concrete priority objectives will facilitate cooperation in this policy area with International Financial Institutions and bilateral donors.

• It is crucial that capacity building and adequate finance from all sources underpins the ambitions set forth. The EU calls upon UNDP and UNEP to provide support for integrating energy in an integrated way into national sustainable development strategies. With the Global Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Fund (GEEREF) the EU has created an additional instrument to support action in the field of renewable energy and energy-efficiency in developing countries. The EU welcomes the establishment of the World Bank's new investment Framework for Clean Energy and Development and calls upon the World Bank to ensure adequate funding for all of its pillars.

• The EU sees great opportunities in improving energy security including access to affordable energy services, while at the same time reducing environmental impacts including impacts on the climate by promoting energy efficiency, energy saving and renewable energies. The currently prepared integrated EU Energy policy and new Climate Change strategy including far-reaching reduction commitments in greenhouse gas emissions will increase our efforts and investments and call on others to join us in this endeavour.

• Such commitments could be implemented through action in for example the context of energy policy, limiting transport emissions, reducing greenhouse gas emissions in residential and commercial buildings, extending the global carbon market and using project-based mechanisms (JI and CDM) and initiatives outside the energy sector.

• The EU Energy Council supported the adoption of ambitious targets at its February 2007 meeting: 20% reduction of energy use due to increased energy efficiency by 2020, increase the share of renewables to 20% by 2020 and increase of share of bio-fuels to 10% by 2020. The EU welcomes an inclusive dialogue to ensure the sustainability of bio-fuels.

• This approach will be an important contribution to the joint efforts to reach emission reductions up to 30 % until 2020, and will further allow reduction in energy consumption, improve competitiveness, reduce dependence on external sources of energy supply, and encourage investment in emission reduction technologies and sustainable low-carbon alternatives.

• The EU proposes a 'basket of voluntary commitments' as an action oriented, non-negotiated outcome of CSD 15. Each state is invited to submit government objectives on access to energy services, energy efficiency and renewable energies as part of this basket. Other relevant actors may wish to make similar commitments as part of the basket.

• We call on the CSD to endorse an effective follow-up and review arrangement regarding progress in the expansion of renewable energy, energy efficiency and access to energy. This review arrangement should be based on existing data to better identify best practices and success factors, to analyze gaps and barriers and to suggest opportunities to accelerate access to energy, to increase energy efficiency and to advance the use and development of renewable energies. This review arrangement would among other things allow bi- and multilateral donors to further focus their support. We propose that the CSD should devote time to review and follow-up on energy for sustainable development in its sessions in 2010/2011 and 2014/2015.

• The EU supports further discussion on the launch of a World Renewable Energy Action Programme in accordance with GA resolution 60/190 that facilitates the right support policies at all levels which would result in a substantial increase in the overall share of renewable energy in the overall global energy mix. The programme should build on the Bonn and Beijing Renewables conferences and foster synergy activities of WB, UNDP, UNEP, GEF and IEA. The programme should be prepared in collaboration with relevant partnerships and initiatives, such as REN 21, REEEP, GVEP, JREC, MEDREP, EEP¹ and be presented to the CSD in 2010.

• The EU calls on the CSD to support its initiative for cooperation on an International Agreement on Energy-efficiency. First discussions with partners including the G20 countries, International Finance Institutions, WTO and NGOs took place in Brussels in February 2007. The Agreement could cover regulatory cooperation, financing and research, education and training, energy auditing and start with establishing standards for electrical appliances, and the harmonisation of international testing and labelling. The EU favours an active engagement of all countries in realizing such an agreement and recognises the profile and coherence of the renewable energy stakeholders is greatly increased by networks such as REN 21 and would support a similar effort for energy efficiency.