PES President Sergei Stanishev welcomed the Commission’s initiative: “Commission Vice-President Šefčovič presented a holistic approach to the multi-facetted demands we European Socialists and Democrats make to a modern energy policy that equally delivers on climate, economic development and external security considerations. The Energy Union is one of the main political priorities of the Party of European Socialists. We will therefore work constructively with the Commission in order to create a comprehensive Energy Union and hope the Framework Strategy will be endorsed by the European Council in March. The Energy Union will lower energy prices for citizens and industry, which will improve the European economy’s international competitiveness, will provide a reliable framework for investments and will contribute to jobs and growth. Such a union will be crucial to meet the EU’s 2030 climate target of 40% reductions of greenhouse gas emissions and makes Europe a credible leader in the Paris climate change negotiations this December. Also, the Energy Union will make markets less dependent on third states’ energy supply and supply disruptions”.
The Framework Strategy adopted by the European Commission proposes a set of measures to reinforce the European energy diplomacy, to foster energy efficiency and the use of renewables, to deepen the internal market for energy, to increase electricity cross-border interconnections, as well as a plan for world-leading European research and innovation on energy and climate.
