The European Parliament voted yesterday (15 December) for a binding energy saving target of "at least 20%" by 2020 when it approved a resolution aiming to influence the EU's forthcoming new Energy Efficiency Action Plan.
MEPs said a binding target would help drive energy savings, which have already been attained through mandatory targets on renewable energy and CO2 emissions. Unlike the two, the EU's current 20% energy efficiency target is currently not legally binding.
According to the latest information, the European Commission will present the long-awaited update of the 2006 action plan in March after several delays.
The Parliament's resolution urges the EU executive to prioritise enforcing existing legislation and assess how it is being implemented. The Commission should also include measures like "individual energy efficiency targets" that will bring an energy savings of at least 20% at EU-level, it said.
"Better product standards is a very efficient instrument at EU level. The existing initiatives on consumer items such as white goods, lighting and television sets entail savings equal to the entire consumption of Great Britain or Italy. These initiatives should therefore be strengthened and extended to other areas," said Danish MEP Bendt Bendtsen (European People's Party), who drew up the resolution.
MEPs also advocated financial incentives to remove hurdles from renovating existing buildings to improve their efficiency. The Commission should also extend its building policy to eco-districts and set up schemes such as district refurbishment plans, they said.