On January
11, Members of the European Parliament’s Industry, Research and Energy
Committee (ITRE) debated and voted a non-legislative draft report on how to
boost clean energy innovation and make the energy system more efficient and
affordable. The motion for a resolution was approved by 53 votes in favour, 3
votes against and 2 abstentions.
Polish MEP
Jerzy Buzek noted that a stable market and the predictability and certainty of
a regulatory framework, along with an ambitious and deliverable long-term
policy vision are the prerequisites for “Accelerating Clean Energy Innovation”.
MEPs
further called for an increased overall budget of at least €120 billion for FP9,
saying that the financing for sustainable, low-emission energy projects should
increase by at least 50% over and above the corresponding Horizon 2020 amounts,
so as to ensure sufficient funding to support EU’s energy transition and the
effective implementation of the Energy Union.
A greater
coherence between the relevant funds, including structural funds, dedicated to
clean energy projects would be necessary, said MEPs, expressing concern about
the large number and complexity of existing financial instruments.
European
citizens should gradually progress from awareness and understanding towards
active involvement and empowerment in energy matters, said MEPs, calling on all
parties to promote informed consumer choices and the engagement of citizens in
energy-related matters through, inter alia: awareness campaigns, comprehensive
and accessible information on energy bills and price comparison tools; the
promotion of self-generation; demand-response and cooperative sharing schemes;
participatory budgets and crowd-funding for energy-related investments, and tax
and investment incentives.
In this
respect, innovation can play an important role by enabling citizens to play a
more active role in energy generation, including by feeding self-generated
energy into the grid, and in contributing to a more efficient use of energy by
reducing consumption at household level, thus decreasing both emissions and
bills, MEPs added.
The plenary
of the European Parliament will vote on the draft text and the final
recommendations will feed into the future setup of the Energy Union.
https://www.neweurope.eu/article/meps-call-research-innovation-mindset-change-boost-clean-energy/