The Impact of the Energy Market Liberalisation on Disctrict Heating/Cooling and on Combined Heat and Power (CHP)

David Lawrence, Euroheat’s President introduced the discussion and focused on the relation between business and energy efficiency in that he observed that the drive towards liberalisation is strong at the EU level, which is good as long as the environment is not made to suffer from the development.

He noted that the district energy sector provides its services to 22 mio. people in the EU and that heat sales alone in the EU were worth more than 10.7 bn. Euro in 1997, involving a work force of as much as 500,000 across the EU. These achievements and the potential that DH offers in terms of environmental protection should be taken into account.

The fact that the EU Directives on liberalisation allow for a high degree of subsidiarity may actually provide a danger to district energy in case appropriate safeguardsare not established in all the member states.

With regard to CHP, he added that there was a discrepancy between the EU objectives of doubling the amount CHP electricity by 2010 to 18% (9% in 1994) and the tools that the EU has been given the sector to achieve the target.

Mr. Lawrence suggested to the audience that a fixed floor price could, as a first step, be set to protect CHP electricity from the fluctuations in electricity prices, which are experienced in a liberalised market.

Dr. Linkohr, MEP observed that while the last four years have been devoted to pass legislation on liberalisation, the next four years will certainly be devoted to regulating the emerging competitive energy markets.

He pointed attention to the fact that the new European Parliament, to be elected in June, will have more powers than before due to the entering into force of the Amsterdam Treaty. If the new Parliament supports a stronger environmental policy, there are many initiatives to be expected from its side in the time to come.