GREEN SOLUTIONS

in the spotlight
energy Directive can
create 30,000 new Jobs
Sweden cannot afford to miss
the opportunities created by
the EU’s Energy Efficiency
Directive (EED), according
to the Swedish network
100% Förnybart. According to the
network, more efficient energy use
would not only generate major
environmental benefits, but also
create around 30,000 new jobs in
Sweden.
100% Förnybart hopes that the
Swedish Minister for IT and Energy,
Anna-Karin Hatt, will focus on this in
eU coUrt to review
ÅlanD winD power’s case
The European Court has
begun looking into
Swedish state sub-
sidies to a wind power
park on the autonomous
Finnish island of Åland.
This will set an important
precedent regarding whether
government funds may be paid to
facilities in other countries, according
to Reuters.
8 | GREEN SOLUTIONS FROM SWEDEN
her upcoming announcement of
Sweden’s strategy for implementing
the EED.
The network proposes that
Sweden harness the job-creating
potential of the EED by mirroring the
EU’s efficiency target, to set higher
targets for energy efficiency for
buildings, to use energy declarations
as an active tool for transitioning
to higher efficiency and to allow
municipalities to set their own,
more stringent energy requirements
through their public procurements.
The Åland wind power company,
which is connected to the Swedish
power grid, but not the Finnish grid,
has petitioned Swedish courts,
complaining that it is not entitled to
the same subsidies as Swedish wind
power farms, which results in a
competitive dis advantage.
The European Court is now set to
decide the case.
It is thought that the Court’s
The network also wants to
encourage new business models,
e.g. by awarding white certificates
(ESC) as incentives for electricity
producers to reduce end-customer
energy consumption, and to encourage
the private sector to make greater
and more conscious efforts to
conserve energy through energy
management in accordance with
the Swedish Programme for Improving
Energy Efficiency in
Energy Intensive Industries
(PFE).
decision will have major ramifications
in the ongoing tug-of-war between
the European Commission, which
wants to share the cost of renewable
energy sources between EU nations,
and parts of the German energy
industry, which believe that such
support breaches antitrust laws.
The court is expected to deliberate
for at least a year. Its decision
will be binding for Swedish courts.