Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2000-09-20-Speech-3-034"
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"en.20000920.4.3-034"2
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".
Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, I am grateful for the opportunity to speak to the whole House after having spoken yesterday for two hours with the Energy Committee.
The Commission intends to fulfil these fundamental objectives and has been working on them for several months. The Commission has practically finished the preparation of a Green Paper on the security of supply and on the Kyoto commitments, that is to say, the conditions for emissions in the energy sector. This Green Paper will be adopted before the end of the year. I hope it will serve as a starting point for a broad debate amongst the interested parties to examine the role and place of each of our energy sources over the next twenty or thirty years. Furthermore, we must promote international dialogue in the short term and step up this dialogue with the producing countries in order to convince them of our common interest in price stability – an issue which they themselves have raised – putting forward the objective of a price band.
At the same time, we have to take account of the geopolitical context in which we are moving, especially of the peace process in the Middle East and the complex political situation in the whole area.
The European Union must send a clear and forceful message to all the OPEC countries and highlight the need for appropriate measures to be taken in order to fulfil what they have indicated to be their objective, that is to say, for oil prices to return to a reasonable band. We must say that we are the main net importer and the second largest consumer of oil in the world. The European Union therefore has the means and reasons justifying its voice to be heard but perhaps political means are not sufficient.
As well as this dialogue with OPEC, however, we must not forget that we need to maintain and strengthen our strategic relations with Russia and we should consider the necessary means to modernise production and distribution conditions in that country which is, let us not forget, the third largest producer of oil in the world and, if we take account of gas, their position is absolutely vital.
The European Union must maintain a united front and speak with one voice. Disparate initiatives by individual Member States will always be incomplete and, what is more, less productive than those on which we stand united.
As for the fiscal aspect, an issue that has been much discussed in recent times, the Commission understands the concerns of the professional sectors most affected by the sudden increase in oil prices. In this respect we encourage the Member States to enter into and maintain social dialogue with all the interested parties in order to find solutions which are suitable and conform to Community law. One of the lessons we can learn from the blockades which have paralysed economic activity in various States, is the need to raise the level of coordination between Member States and, of course, with the support of the Commission. To this end, Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, in a few minutes I will leave this meeting to depart for Luxembourg, where a special Council of Transport Ministers is taking place.
For both environmental and economic reasons, Member States must not give in to pressure and change their overall medium-term policy on oil. A reduction in taxation or subsidies over an extended period would simply amount to a transfer of the fiscal income towards the OPEC countries and would send them an inappropriate message.
However, the very difficult situation we are in at the moment probably requires, in the short term, the adoption of aid measures by the competent public authorities. In fact, there are already some agreements on the table. I must point out though that these measures must be purely transitional and in all cases must conform to competition rules and not violate the internal rules of the single market.
We must seek consensus on the approach to fuel taxation and prevent the kind of cacophony which results from the actions and statements of the different States of the Union. For example, what is the point of talking about ecological taxes on a European scale if we cannot quickly harmonise the rates of the special taxes and VAT within the Union?
Ladies and gentlemen, in this context I must say that a reduction in the special taxes in favour of road transport can only be considered as a very short-term measure, lasting no more than a few months. In no event can it be extended, since that would run directly counter to the objectives to promote other types of alternative transport, such as the railways, it would go against our Kyoto objectives and would undoubtedly contradict what have been our guiding principles in European Union transport policy until now.
Recent times have been marked by the fact that oil prices have been rising for the last 18 months, and the European public is feeling the full effect. Clearly, the people who will suffer most as a result of this rise will be the least-favoured social groups and also certain specific sectors which are particularly affected.
The Commission is extremely concerned about the serious attacks on free movement which have taken place recently on various occasions. We believe, and I wish to say this once again, that no one social category should be allowed to hold the whole of society to ransom.
I was talking about aid, however, and I wish to say that we must break up and end anti-competitive practices and these practices are clearly taking place in the fuel sector. Why should there be such a considerable difference in the prices – before tax – of oil derivatives as there is at the moment in the European Union, in some cases just across the border in the next country? The Commission intends to continue the contacts established with Member States in order to detect any practices which contravene competition rules. Any agreements between companies or abuses of dominant positions must be severely penalised. We will also have to examine the question of competition between intermodal sectors in order to find solutions on a European scale. But we must not fool ourselves, ladies and gentlemen. We are talking about short-term actions which may alleviate the current crisis, but in no way change the undeniable fact that our economy is vulnerable to energy fluctuations. It is true that the economy is less vulnerable than it was 25 years ago, but at the end of the day it is still vulnerable. Oil consumption in the European Union stands at 12 million barrels per day and is expected to reach just over 13 million in 2020. It is probable that the barrel price, in normal economic circumstances, will not in the long term return to below 20 dollars – and, of course, in no event to what it was 18 months ago, that is to say, 10 dollars.
We must tackle this dependency and this situation through two fundamental fields of action: diversifying our sources and saving energy. The discussion of diversification requires a long-term debate. The future Green Paper on supply will contribute to it. I wish to state very clearly that, when talking about diversification of energy sources, sustainable energy has a clear and decisive contribution to make for the future, but at the moment we cannot ignore any type of energy.
The management of demand and energy saving is the other area on which we must focus for the long term. With regard to oil, we are today 50% more efficient that 25 years ago, but it must be said that the transport sector still has to make a special effort in this area. More than 90% of the increase in oil consumption in the Union from now until 2020 will be absorbed in principle by the transport sector. That is why we need a White Paper on transport policy which seeks to readjust modes of transport, to improve the Trans-European Networks, to eliminate points of congestion, to promote the railways, river transport, short haul sea shipping, to promote effective and less polluting urban transport, with the rationalisation of the use of the traditional car and the promotion of innovative research projects into clean fuels, and to improve the awareness and education of drivers.
Measures must also be adopted for construction and savings in this sector, which is one of the fields that consumes most energy, not to mention the promotion of competition in the gas sector and the emergence of gas as a competitor and alternative to oil.
In conclusion, Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, it is clear that we will only overcome the current crisis through coherent strategies which are well coordinated and multi-faceted. Unfortunately, we do not have access to a panacea to resolve this situation in the short term, but luckily this current crisis has shown us the only way to overcome it: to promote competition in our markets, consolidate our common presence at an international level, coordinate our actions, adapt our priorities to the new energy objectives and act together in the fiscal field. In the difficult situation we find ourselves in, the citizens expect us to turn these objectives into tangible realities, thinking not only of the immediate future but also of the medium and long term.
At the beginning of 1999, the price of a barrel of crude oil stood at around 10 dollars, whereas today it stands at around 33 to 35 dollars. This is the highest level since the Gulf war, and is a level which most experts believed could only happen in cases of geopolitical crisis.
The reason for this rise is very clear: the restriction on production on the part of the OPEC countries which coincides with a world economic recovery and the resulting increase in demand. The impact of this rise has been particularly great in the European Union and especially in the euro zone, owing to the euro’s value against the dollar.
We cannot ignore the consequences of this rise on Europe’s economic development. In specific terms, we estimate that, at the moment, this accounts for 1% of our inflation and a reduction of around 0.3% of our growth. Some specific professional sectors – farming, fishing and transport – are in situations which are at times frankly difficult.
However, both the producing countries and the consumer countries share a common interest, that of stability and the predictability of prices. We would all benefit from prices being established in a market of free competition and not, as is happening now, in accordance with a monopolistic situation in a market which to be honest is less than transparent.
Furthermore, the European Union’s level of dependency currently stands at around 50%. However, unless we introduce new measures, we will reach more or less 70% by 2020. In the specific case of oil, our dependency on external sources stands at between 85% and 90%. This must clearly lead us to a debate on the increase in our energy dependency on external sources and, therefore, on our vulnerability in this respect.
We must grasp our responsibility and our destiny with both hands. Although the European Union’s competence in the field of energy is limited, we must not remain passive in the face of such a situation and allow it to get worse, but rather we must find answers. That is why ensuring a sufficient level of independence and, above all, of availability in the European Union’s energy supplies, must be a priority policy and furthermore a policy on a Community scale.
Little more than a year ago, when I first came into contact with this House as future Commissioner with responsibility for energy, I indicated very clearly that, from the Commission’s point of view, there were two crucial elements which needed to be considered in the coming years. On the one hand, the need to strategically promote dialogue on energy policy in international fora, and especially with the large producing and consumer countries, and, on the other, the need to adapt our priorities so that we can better focus our changes in the face of adverse energy situations such as the current one."@en1
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