Isra-Mart srl:EU threatens mandatory energy efficiency targets

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The EU is threatening to impose legally binding energy efficiency targets on member states unless they step up efforts to meet targets requiring them to cut energy use 20 per cent by 2020.

According to draft documents obtained by news agency Reuters, energy commissioner Guenther Oettinger is planning to give states two years to improve energy-saving efforts before putting plans for mandatory targets forwards.

The bloc is broadly on track to meet binding targets requiring it to cut carbon emissions 20 per cent and generate 20 per cent of its energy from renewables by the end of the decade. But it is reportedly set to miss its non-binding energy efficiency target by more than half and is currently expected to reduce energy use by just 8.9 per cent by 2020.

According to the EU, increased investment in energy efficiency measures could create two million jobs and result in long-term financial savings for businesses and consumers. But cash-strapped governments are currently reluctant to make sizable upfront investments in improving the energy efficiency of buildings and industry, given the fact that it could take several years for them to see the returns.

The European Commission is preparing to try to reinvigorate the bloc's energy efficiency efforts with the publication next month of a new EU-wide energy efficiency programme.

A draft of the strategy documents obtained by Reuters reveals the action plan will set a new target for public buildings that would require that two per cent of buildings are renovated each year.

"Each refurbishment should bring the building up to the level of the best 10 percent of the national building stock," the plan states.

It also proposes an expansion of the existing Energy Service Companies (ESCOs) system, which groups public buildings together and encourages private firms to invest in green renovation programmes in return for a share of the long-term energy savings.

The document is also expected to spell out that the latest proposals represent the last chance for member states to cut energy use voluntarily, and will outline plans to propose binding targets within the next two years if performance does not improve.