ESNA - Energy Services Network Association - The Association of NES Users

Fortum welcomes the Energy Roadmap 2050, published yesterday, which presents various scenarios outlining the consequences of a carbon free energy system and the policy framework needed to reach the established long-term target of reducing CO2 emissions by 80% - 95 % below 1990 levels by 2050.

"It is important that the EU develops a coherent forward looking vision and strategy on how to reach the 2050 de-carbonisation target. The CO2 reduction target should be the key driver of future policies", says Dr. Anne Brunila, Executive Vice President, Corporate Relations and Sustainability at Fortum Corporation.

Fortum has long been developing CO2-free energy solutions. In the EU, 86% of Fortum's power generation is already CO2-free. Now the company is moving from the research-only phase of solar economy to priming for actual commercial operations also in direct solar energy.

Due to long investment cycles of the European energy sector it is important to start discussing longer term targets and policies already now. It is equally important to agree on a European approach to energy policy measures.

All decarbonisation scenarios presented in the Roadmap show that the demand of renewable energy will grow, energy savings will play a crucial role, the role of electricity will increase and the capital investments will increase.

"In order to proceed to the targeted direction, the long investment cycles of energy sector and the fact that policy uncertainty is a key risk for investors needs to be taken into account. Well functioning internal energy market should be seen as an important precondition for a successful and cost-efficient transition towards low-carbon economy."

"At the moment we see a very rapid development of policies in the field of climate, renewable energy, energy efficiency and internal market. It can be questioned whether all current targets and measures are mutually supportive", she says. "Now that all four 2050 Roadmaps have been published, EU leaders should have a stock-taking discussion on the future direction of energy and climate policies, including target setting. We hope that the incoming Danish EU Presidency will take this issue on its agenda."

"With the financial crisis shaking Europe, the integration of electricity markets is more topical than ever. The de-carbonisation targets require hundreds of billions in investments both in low-emissions energy production and transmission infrastructure. Europe cannot afford this if the countries are making decisions based on national energy policies. Instead, countries should work together to remove the obstacles to competition and to allow the markets to steer energy investments to where they are most economical", Dr. Brunila reminds.

Fortum's views on Energy 2050 Roadmap and post-2020 target setting:

The greenhouse gas reduction target should be the key driver of future policies.
Emission trading should get a visible role in the Energy Roadmap.
Renewable energy and energy efficiency should be seen as tools to achieve the climate target, not as separate policies.
Renewable energy should be competitive in the market after 2020 on its own.
Overlapping steering mechanisms have negative impact on internal energy market.
A discussion about moving towards more coordinated and harmonised renewable energy support scheme is needed before 2020.
Cooperation between European countries e.g. in using renewable energy sources should get more attention.
Sustainability aspects should be taken into account in increasing use of biomass and sustainability criteria should be applied to imported biomass, too.
The roadmap should be based on realistic assumptions rather that political aspirations.
Strong emphasis should be put on increasing transmission lines across Europe to accommodate increasing amount of renewable electricity and to speed up market integration.