EU policies: Energy
Introduction
The Directorate-General for Energy is one of 33 policy-specific departments in the European Commission. It focuses on developing and implementing the EU's energy policy – secure, sustainable, and competitive energy for Europe.
DG Energy is organised into five Directorates consisting of 17 individual units. Organigrame
The Directorate-General for Energy is responsible for developing and implementing a European energy policy under the political guidance of the European Commission Vice-President for Energy
Union Maroš Šefčovič and Climate Action and Energy Commissioner Miguel Arias Cañete.
The overview of the EU is really big such us the 53% of the energy that EU consume is imported from other contries, at a cost of more than 1 million per day. Also the huge amount of energy imported is the 20% of the total imports in the EU.
How it Works?
By contributing to setting up an energy market providing citizens and business with affordable energy, competitive prices and technologically advanced energy services.
Promoting susteinable energy and enhancing the conditions for safe and secure energy supply in a way of solidarity between EU countries ensuring a high degree for protection for EU citizens.
STRATEGIES AND POLICIES
The European Union's energy policies are driven by three main objectives:
Reliable provision to secure that there is going to be energy whenever and wherever it is needed
Energy providers operate in a competitive environment that ensures affordable prices.
Energy consumption to be sustainable, through the lowering of greenhouse gas emissions, pollution, and fossil fuel dependence.
Key policies to achive our goals:
Free flow of energy across national borders within the EU, and bringing new technologies and renewed infrastructure to cut household bills, create jobs and boost growth
A European Energy Security Strategy
Boosting the EU's domestic production of energy
Promoting energy efficiency
To achive these goals the EU has set some objectives in the long-run.
2020: reduce greenhouse gases by at least 20%. 2030: 40% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.
2020: increase the share of renewable energy in the EU's energy mix to at least 20% of consumption. 2030: a binding target of at least 27% of renewable energy in the EU.
Improve energy efficiency by at least 20% with the potential to raise the target to 30% by 2030
the completion of the internal energy market by reaching an electricity interconnection target of 15% between EU countries by 2030.
On 30 November 2016, the Commission released a package of draft legislative proposal designed to help achieve these targets.
The finally EU aim is to achieve an 80% to 95% reduction in greenhouse gases by 2050.
TYPES OF ENERGIES
RENEWABLE ENERGY
There are many ways of obtaining this energy: wind, solar, hydro, geothermal and biomass. This energy is more sustainable, for this reason, the EU reduce its depencence on imported fossil fuels. In 2020, the EU hope a 20% of consumpltion of EU citizens is a renewal energy and at least 10% of their transport fuels come from renewable sources.
Many countries of EU have agreed energy action plans to achieve their renewal targets:
OIL, GAS AND COAL
These energies are non-renewable resources which there is a huge quantity of consumption in EU (three-quarters of energy which is consumed in EU is a non-renewable energy). This kind of energies are used to the creation of electricity and heat, transports and in industrial processes.
Reserves of these energies are owned for countries where reserves are but countries are bound by a common set of rules ("Prospection, Exploration, and Production of Hydrocarbon Directive").
NUCLEAR ENERGY
Nuclear energy generate almost 30% of the electricity which is produced in the EU. In 14 EU countries, there are 130 nuclear reactors.
Each State decides if they want or not a portion of nuclear power in its energy mix.
The peaceful use of nuclear energy within the EU is governed by the 1957 Euratom Treaty, which established the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom). While Euratom is a separate legal entity from the EU, it is governed by the EU's institutions.
INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION
Energy challenges for EU are too important and they need of international cooperation. Themost important challenges are: climate change, environmental protection and volatile prices.
Nowadays the world energy demand is growing as quick as before because competition in fossil fuel markets are increasing. This cooperation guarantees a supply of energy at competitive prices in Europe and provides energy in a safe way.
INTERGOVERNMENTAL AGREEMENTS MADE BY EU COUNTRIES
There are many different countries in European Union but those make energy agreementsbetween them and this provides a huge quantity of energetic information for EU. The mostimportant body is the Commission of EE because of it is an exchange mechanism. TheCommission ensures that laws are complied and there is not an obstacle in the internalmarket od enerfy.
EU COOPERATION WITH OTHER COUNTRIES
Many countries around the world provide different energies to EU countries. These countries have a good deal to diversify the emergy sources and avoid disruptions to supply.
NORWAY
This country is situated in the third position in the world as an exporter country. Mainly the exportation of this country is based on oil and gas energies, although Norway also produces a big amount of hydroelectric power which it is not effective yet until conections between countries.
As Norway is a member of EU, it is a country which is highly involved in the energy market and also in the reduction of gas emissions.
RUSIA
Russia is one of the countries in the world which exports big quantities of energy. Mainly Russia exports more than one-third of natural gas.
Many countries in EU and in the world depend on Russia supplies, and in more specific way, the natural gas.
CENTRAL ASIA AND CAUCASUS COUNTRIES
These areas are too potential in natural reources like oil and gas, for this reason, EU has incremented the negotiations with other sectors, for example : Azerbaiajn, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistán.
EU COOPERATION WITH INTERNATIONAL ORGANISATIONS
The EU also works with important international energy organisations including the International Energy Agency (IEA), the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), and the Organisation for Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).
OPEC COUNTRIES. OPEC (Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries)
It´s an organisation formed by 12 countries which are too important for EU because OPEC provides around 40% of oil to EU. The main countries of this organisation are: Saudi Arabia, Libya and Nigeria.
The EU and OPEC sometimes meet in one year for discussing different issues like stability of energy prices and transparent markets
This relationships between countries help to reduce the indepencence on fossil fuels and energy imports, improve the security of energy supply and fight against climate change.
LAW ENFORCEMENT
The European Commission supersives that EU countries apply EU energy law correctly. When there is a breach, the Commission can take legal action by launching an infringement procedure and eventually the Court of Justice of EU takes place.
