Round Table Chat Members

Mr Bashir Khanbhai

Member of European Parliament

Mr Luc Werring

Head of Unit for Regulatory Policy and Promotion of New Energies and Demand Management, Energy and Transport Directorate-General, European Commission

Mr Jean-Marie Bemtgen

Desk Officer for Sixth Framework Programme (FP6) and Intelligent Energy - Europe (IEE) programmes, Unit D3, Energy and Transport Directorate-General, European Commission

Mr Marcell Rommerts

Unit for Clean Transport, Energy and Transport Directorate-General, European Commission

ManagEnergy Management Team

Mrs Katy Hall

ManagEnergy webmaster, UK, data@managenergy.net

ManagEnergy Registrants

<PL_Eng>

Poland

<marcin_gd>

Poland - EC BREC - EC Baltic Renewable Energy Centre, Warsaw

<SE>

Sweden

<FIN_Ahtia>

Finland

<A_rally>

Austria

<DE_heich>

Germany

<SE__EWER>

Sweden - OPET Network, STEM - Swedish Energy Agency

<UK_JC>

UK - CPL Scientific Publishing Services Ltd

<PL_Wlodar>

Poland

Mrs Katy Hall

Welcome to the ManagEnergy Annual Conference Round Table Live Interactive Chat. LOGIN NOW to submit advance questions for the Round Table.

<PL_Eng>

We have here in the Poland very ineffective government agencies and many structural funds supported ineffective state firms. Many private firms are excluded from supports because Brussels accept this situation.
   I am owner of experienced engineering firm from the renewable energy sector. Unfortunately, for my client I can find investment found in the government agencies. This is problem because they need money. I would like to find support for private investors directly in EU. Is this possible??

Mrs Katy Hall

Thank you for your questions: While a programme is being planned, most interaction will take place at government level. However, once the Intelligent Energy - Europe Programme is running, private companies can respond to calls for proposals and join consortia with similar bodies from other Member States.

<PL_Eng>

I know: talking without concrete - typical for many bureaucrats from EU and research peoples. This is great "talking team" and effects are very small. Sorry this is my subjective opinion.

Mrs Katy Hall

<marcin_gd>: Welcome - do you have a question for the Round Table?

<marcin_gd>

Yes. I am working very close with the local governments in Poland. The ManagEnergy is dedicated actually for them, however the local governments in the rural areas which have a greatest potential for RES development though they lack an experience, human resources and financial resources as well. How can ManagEnergy programmes support them?

Mrs Katy Hall

In response to feedback and requests during this Conference, we are intending to develop a new section for "Local Government" in the next few weeks.
   Your ideas on what you would like to see in this section and on ManagEnergy in general will be most welcome.

Mr Jean-Marie Bemtgen

The IEE programme will contain many actions and the detailed information day will be organised tomorrow. This question is too wide for this chat and I cannot summarise a whole info day in 3 lines. Please see the IEE Info Day page for more details.

<marcin_gd>

But how can the local governments be supported throughout ManagEnergy, actually what they would need as an energy manager - a civil servant possessing a relevant knowledge and experience. Will ManagEnergy provide a support to these LAs to train such persons?

Mrs Katy Hall

ManagEnergy offers information and help through workshops and the website and can help as a tool for capacity building and making partnerships.

<marcin_gd>

Thank you for the answer.

Mrs Katy Hall

There are funding opportunities for training projects in FP6 and IEE. You will be able to find more information about IEE during the info day tomorrow. There are presentations in the morning and a big Question and Answer session in the afternoon. There is also specific support for SMEs - you should find more information from your national contact point for FP6. Also there is training money available under Marie Curie.
   Further information about FP6 and IEE are included in the Programmes and Funds section of the ManagEnergy website.

<SE>

How does DG Tren see the role of the Energy Agencies regarding Transport issues, since it's one of the energy sectors Europe yet struggling with.

Mrs Katy Hall

Thank you for your question - we will put this to the Round Table

Mrs Katy Hall

Mr Marcel Rommerts has just answered your question... Agencies with a particular focus or interest in Transport, especially urban, please make yourself known to us via ManagEnergy (info@managenergy.net) so that we can look into how ManagEnergy and the Commission can meet your needs.

Mrs Katy Hall

Welcome FIN_Ahtia - do you have a question for the Round Table?

<FIN_Ahtia>

Many of the agencies are small and work with limited budgets. Does the commission have any plans to promote the status of the local agencies?

Mrs Katy Hall

Thank you for your question - we will pass it to the round table.

Mr Luc Werring

We will have money under the Intelligent Energy program to promote good actions. When an Agency is a good action then it will be further promoted.

Mrs Katy Hall

Welcome <NL_Mensie> & <A_rally>: Do you have questions for the round table?

<A_rally>

No thank you, not in the moment I was just interested if someone is in the chat.

Mrs Katy Hall

Yes there are people in the Chat - but most log in - ask a question and leave - just like you have. You should be able to see our reply in the Chat window under the slides.

Mrs Katy Hall

<SE__EWER>: Welcome - do you have a question for the Round Table?

<SE__EWER>

One community/municipality, which is a 100 percent renewable, could inspire other communities to do the same. Is there any programme within EC for EC-funding for such inspiring activities?

Mrs Katy Hall

A number of these projects are listed as case studies on the ManagEnergy website.

Mr Luc Werring

100 percent communities are one of the main themes in the so-called "campaign for take off" which will have its final conference in Berlin on 19 January 2004. This theme will certainly continue in follow up programmes.

<SE__EWER>

There are now two kinds of networks trying to reach the aim of technology development among res and rue i e ManagEnergy and the OPET-network. Could someone from EC give comments on how to link these networks together for great synergy effects in the future?

Mr Jean-Marie Bemtgen

The aim of this conference and of our future actions is to foster cooperation between these two and other network, with the overall aim to stimulate a real synergy and to better serve the local level and the citizens.

<SE__EWER>

The emissions from transport crossing a lot of community/municipality boarders is a big problem to solve. How could we work locally and centrally respectively to decrease the emissions from the transport within the frame of "Act Locally Think Globally".

Mr Jean-Marie Bemtgen

Your question seems very interesting, and we had some discussions about how to interpret the question. We would suggest bringing this question to the round table discussion.
   What exactly do you mean: long distance transport of goods? and their impact on local air quality? And how to address these problems at local level? Is this what you meant??

<SE__EWER>

Yes that is exactly what I meant about transport.

Mr Jean-Marie Bemtgen

OK, we will ask that the round table panel address the question.

Mr Jean-Marie Bemtgen

Mr Marcell Rommerts: Question to the panel: transport of goods over long distances may have a major negative impact on local air quality. What can local agencies do to alleviate this problem, within the spirit of "think globally, act locally"? [You can view the response from the panel in the video recordings for this Conference].

<SE__EWER>

How should we make the manufacturers of RES collaborate more with manufacturers of energy efficient systems and products on a local level in order to achieve greater impacts on the integrated RUE and RES for more sustainable development?

Mr Jean-Marie Bemtgen

These are the main aims of Concerto and IEE: no product without a market; so we have to stimulate the demand of additional RES and RUE technologies and measures, within applications that are cost-effective.
   Concerto doesn't aim to the highest share of RES, but of the most cost-effective locally optimised integrated system where energy demand is reduced to a minimum and RES supply so high that the pay back is still realistic and that banks agree to loans (3 to 6 years pay-back).

Mr Bashir Khanbhai

Pollution from transport, especially vehicles, cannot be controlled and managed solely by municipalities and regions as these vehicles may originate from any part of the EU and be destined to another country. Therefore, acceptable pollution levels and criteria for emissions or different types of vehicles should be specified for the whole of the EU.
   Even future planning and upgrading of roads in any Member State should encourage vehicles to bypass populated areas and this can only be managed at a national level. It would be impossible municipalities in any Member State to have their own individual pollution controls.

<UK_JC>

I have a comment to add concerning previous remarks on transport pollution and control between regions.
   This can be solved by an approach similar to the US Clean Air Act, including mandatory inclusion of oxygenated compounds at a proscribed level in fuels used in ozone, pollution sensitive areas.
   This could be met by or result from the addition of bioethanol as per the Biofuels Directive.

Mr Jean-Marie Bemtgen

In UK, are there any good examples about feeding energy objectives into regional planning?

Mr Bashir Khanbhai

Specification of fuel quality to minimise air pollution can only have optimal results when implemented right across the EU. Vehicles fuelling in one country and travelling to another cannot be monitored for fuel quality at national frontiers.

Mr Luc Werring

Biofuel helps to combat climate change by its better CO2 balance and it will also contribute to diversification of energy supply. It's contribution to local air pollution if blended, as bio ethanol is minimal. Biodiesel will certainly contribute to a better local environment, as it contains no sulphur.

Mr Jean-Marie Bemtgen

80% of the transport pollution is generated by 20% of the eldest dirtiest vehicles. Clean fuels are a must, but getting the dirtiest old vehicles off the road is a must to improve air quality in the short term, this is an additional measure and does not contradict with your statement. Please do consider that today we still have more than 25% of cars without catalytic converters on the EU roads (pre-Euro1) and average life expectation of cars is some 10 years. For public transport buses in cities this can go to 25 years and more. So imagine the difference of a 25-year-old bus and a new Euro4-bus or truck.

<UK_JC>

MY assumption would be that a Directive would be implemented across the EU by incorporation into National Legislation, however no doubt countries with high % of old vehicles would ask for a derogation on the bias of economic cost of providing a new fleet.

Mr Bashir Khanbhai

In view of the vast numbers of older vehicles, especially trucks and lorries in use in accession countries, it is essential to continue to develop both pollution free fuels and sophisticated catalytic converters so that vehicle emissions can be minimised, irrespective of the age of vehicles. This would be the most effective way of managing air pollution across the EU.

<PL_Wlodar>

In the last days the President of Poland approved the Act on Biofuels which occurred to be very controversial. Available fuels are to contain up to 5% of bio components and over 5%. What are the EU experiences on biofuels and their influence upon the vehicles? Which is the main argument of the Act's opposes? Perhaps my question is too broad to answer at the chat, so perhaps I could be redirected to any Internet resources dedicated to that problem?

Mr Luc Werring

The EU Directive prescribes 2% in 2005 and 5.75 % in 2010 biofuel share in the sales of petrol and/or diesel. The use of biofuel in the EU has shown an increase since the adoption of this Directive and we are now approaching the 1 % in the EU. The main arguments are based on compatibility with other environmental issues, such as biodiversity.

<UK_JC>

EU experience is limited, as indicated previously experience on the impact of adding bioethanol to gasoline for environmental reasons comes from over 20 years experience in the USA. No country has long-term wide scale experience of biodiesel. Look at US Department of Energy web sites, also National Renewable Energy Lab, ENREL.

Mr Luc Werring

Germany, Austria and Luxembourg have a relatively long and positive experience with pure (and in some cases blended biodiesel) most diesels that is sold in France contains 5 % biodiesel since several years.

<UK_JC>

When was the Biofuels Directive adopted?

<PL_Wlodar>

Is biodiesel included into the Directive?

Mr Luc Werring

Biofuel Directive was adopted in June this year and includes biodiesel.

<UK_JC>

Thanks, are there mandated levels for all fuels or is addition discretionary?

Mr Luc Werring

It is up to the Member States how to fulfil the targets, it can be with only biodiesel, only ethanol, ETBE or with mixed applications.

<UK_JC>

Can you buy and sell, biofuel, credited between sectors, or countries?

Mr Luc Werring

The target is set as a share of biofuel in the sales of petrol and diesel. Of course this biofuel may be produced in another country but Most member States would like also to profit from the positive effects on rural development.

<UK_JC>

Thanks.

Mr Luc Werring

Thank you for your interest!!

Mr Jean-Marie Bemtgen

Thank you very much for your interesting questions.

Mr Bashir Khanbhai

We hope you enjoyed the chat, thank you for your questions.

Mrs Katy Hall

THE CHAT ROOM IS NOW CLOSED, BUT PLEASE CONTINUE TO FOLLOW THE INTERVIEWS [See the 2003 Conference Home Page to access the video recordings of the interviews].