Dear Reader
The European Commission is starting the New Year with a new Director-General and Deputy Director-General for energy and with several initiatives in the pipeline. Just to state some, the Commission has adopted a proposal on clean vehicles and the consultation on the Green Paper on Energy Efficiency will end on 31 March. The Intelligent Energy – Europe Annual Work programme for the year 2006 will be submitted for the approval of the IEE Committee on 3 February and a new Green Paper on European Competitive and Sustainable Energy Policy will be published soon.
We will inform you about the details of these issues in forthcoming editions. Meanwhile, the 5th Annual ManagEnergy Conference will allow us to discuss these and other local and European energy issues.
ManagEnergy editorial team
European Commission activities:
ManagEnergy activities:
Other activities:
 Andris Piebalgs |
Speaking at the European Motor Show on 12 January, EU Energy Commissioner Andris Piebalgs explained the importance attached to biofuels by the EU. Two of the key reasons are the contribution of biofuels to tackling the problems of security of supply and climate change. These priorities are reflected in the Biofuels Directive adopted by the European Union in 2003, which set the target of a 5.75% market share for biofuels by 2010, and in the Biomass Action Plan adopted by the European Commission in December. By December 2006, the Commission is due to bring out a report that will look at whether the Biofuels Directive needs to be further strengthened. Reference: SPEECH/06/2 Date: 12/01/2006 Full Speech [EN] |
 Matthias Ruete |
Since January 2006, the Directorate-General for Energy & Transport has been headed by Matthias Ruete as Director-General. Mr Ruete first joined the European Commission in 1986 and since 2000 he has been Director of a number of Units within the Enterprise and Industry, Enlargement, and Energy & Transport DGs. Prior to that he was a member, and later Deputy Head, of the Cabinet of the Commissioner for Research, Innovation and Education. |
 Fabrizio Barbaso |
Mr Fabrizio Barbaso became Deputy Director-General of Energy and Transport in charge of energy at the beginning of 2006, transferring from his previous role as acting Director-General of the Enlargement DG. With qualifications in law and born in Torino, he started his professional activities working for a multinational group in Italy. He joined the Internal Market and Industrial Affairs DG of the European Commission in 1976 and worked in the cabinets of two Italian Commissioners between 1983 and 1992. From 1992-2003, he held various senior posts in the Internal Market and Industrial Affairs, External Relations and Agriculture DGs. Fabrizio Barbaso will making the opening presentation, EU Policy for Sustainable Energy, at the 5th ManagEnergy Annual Conference. |
The Intelligent Energy – Europe programme is making its impact felt across the EU: 91 new European projects for energy efficiency and more renewables are starting this year with the support of the programme, bringing the total number of projects to more than 200. Details of most of the new projects are now available on:
ec.europa.eu/energy/intelligent/projects/index_en.htm
The IEEA organises in early February three workshops for Intelligent Energy – Europe project partners. These will concentrate on the setting up of new energy management agencies, the transport-related knowledge of such agencies, and the 'sustainable energy communities' concept. For more details please check out:
ec.europa.eu/energy/intelligent/events/meetings_en.htm
These workshops take place during or near the forthcoming 5th ManagEnergy Conference on Local Energy Action. The ManagEnergy initiative is supported by the Intelligent Energy – Europe programme.
Energy Commissioner, Andris Piebalgs, in his speech to Parliamentarians on 24 January, stated "...our energy options are many, all options are open for discussion, but energy efficiency is not one of these options; it is a must. The only question remaining is how to make it happen."
The 5th ManagEnergy Annual Conference aims to address this question. It not only allows you to hear from speakers from the European Commission (EC), including the newly appointed Deputy Director-General in charge of Energy, Fabrizio Barbaso, but also to hear the opinions of representatives of local and regional energy actors. The aim of the event is to encourage the contribution of these local actors to the EU Action Plan for Energy Efficiency, hence the programme has allocated considerable time to debate and feedback from the audience. In addition, a number of workgroups have been organised allowing participants to make good use of their time in Brussels in networking with colleagues from throughout Europe.
Don't forget to visit the ManagEnergy and EC stands during the conference to collect new publications including the 2006 Energy Agencies Map and Directory, a new Good Practice brochure and further information about the Green Paper on Energy Efficiency.
If you have not yet registered for this event please do so as soon as possible. Alternatively, if you are unable to join us in Brussels, we encourage you to view the event live on the internet and contribute via the online Chat.
A brochure detailing 12 examples of good practice from energy agencies across Europe is now available for download from this website and will be distributed in printed form at the 5th ManagEnergy Conference on Local Energy Action.
Each good practice has been validated by the European Commission against a set of objective criteria, and they have been chosen for their strong contribution to the promotion of energy efficiency and/or renewable energy use and for their strong possibilities of replication. The examples of good practice represent a wide variety of approaches, and all of them could be replicated elsewhere. But there are many other approaches which could be taken, and this brochure is meant to stimulate thought rather than provide all the answers.
Download the Good Practice Brochure (519 Kb PDF)
It is well known how difficult it can be to find specific information among hundreds of video presentation on a given issue. And once the video has been found, it could take 10-20 minutes before the video has advanced to a specific point at which the speaker delivers the information you are interested in. This is no longer the case!
ManagEnergy offers you a new intelligent video search tool that allows you to search video speeches and presentations on the ManagEnergy Internet Broadcast website based on slide text, name of the speaker, event, date etc. The search engine finds you the most relevant information and lists it in chronological order starting from the most recent video. Furthermore, the engine will bring you directly to the beginning of the slide in which the topic is presented. This extended search facility is available for all ManagEnergy videos created since January 2005.
We hope that this new functionality will again help you to more easily find information on energy efficiency and renewable energies. As always, we remain open for your continuing suggestions for further improved communication services. Together, we will boost energy efficiency and renewables again in the year 2006!
This Congress, which takes place in Sofia, Bulgaria from 8-10 March 2006, aims to contribute to the promotion of sustainable energy systems and equipment for accelerating their market penetration, stimulating investments to facilitate the transition from the demonstration to the marketing of more efficient technologies. It is organised under the auspices of the Ministry of Economy and Energy and the Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works.
ManagEnergy Project Manager, Christopher Waldén, will be speaking about ManagEnergy at this event. You will also have the opportunity to meet members of the ManagEnergy team on our stand in order to discuss issues related to local and regional energy management and the free of charge services offered by ManagEnergy.
This ISLENET Conference is funded by the Intelligent Energy - Europe Programme and co-sponsored by the Western Isles Council. The main objectives are:
The Conference Programme and other information on how to access the conference venue are now available on ISLENET's website (www.islenet.net).
Download the Programme and the Registration Form.
ManagEnergy will be participating in this event and will also have a stand where you can meet members of the team to discuss issues related to local and regional energy management and the free of charge services offered by ManagEnergy.
As space is limited, please confirm your attendance as soon as possible by contacting:
Panos Coroyannakis, ISLENET Manager
Tel/Fax: +32 10 419976 GSM: +32 486 403913 Email: islenet@skynet.be
Wind Energy is the most widely deployed and fastest growing of all the new renewable energy technologies. The earth's installed wind capacity has increased by 180 percent over the last five years resulting in the growth of an 11 billion dollar renewable energy industry.
This growth has been facilitated to a great degree by various economic support mechanisms that have given wind energy the competitive edge to perform in the energy market. Understanding these support mechanisms is crucial for the planning and operation of wind energy project.
This webinar brings together a panel of the most prominent industry experts from four of the largest wind energy markets in the world to discuss the effects of financial support mechanisms in each area.
Participation in this live internet event is free of charge.