EURELECTRIC President Mexia and PKEE President Woszczyk reveal their expectations for the Energy Union

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EURELECTRIC President and CEO of EDP, Antonio Mexia, and PKEE President and CEO of PGE, Marek Woszczyk, expressed their views regarding the ongoing discussions on the Energy Union during a media lunch today. They also referred to the first annual State of the Energy Union report, which EURELECTRIC welcomed yesterday. EURELECTRIC believes that European Commission and the Member States should seek to learn from examples of best practices and consider these as important contributions towards an increasingly regional and European approach.

“EURELECTRIC welcomes the development of an Energy Union as a single overarching framework for EU climate and energy policy. A more coherent approach is needed in European renewables policy, security of supply, internal energy market and interconnections. We believe that the Energy Union provides an excellent opportunity to work towards achieving this,” said EURELECTRIC President and CEO of EDP, Antonio Mexia. “The achievement of the Energy Union is one of EURELECTRIC’s key priorities for the next two years, and we look forward to continuing to contribute constructively to this process.” he added. “As the Commission proposes,Member States should assess and discuss the impacts of key national policy measures with the Commission, as well as with neighbouring countries. This will help ensure consistency with other measures, maximise cost efficiency and minimise market distortions.”

“We have welcomed this opportunity to co-host an event with EURELECTRIC on one of the most crucial developments in the European Union today,” said Marek Woszczyk, PKEE President and CEO of PGE. “We believe that the development of a governance system for the Energy Union offers an important platform to explore and identify the benefits and opportunities for improved cooperation between Member States in their climate and energy policies,” he added. “We need to find a balance between all the pillars of EU energy policy, without prioritising one at the cost of another. Therefore, we will continue to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in our sector - but we need to do this wisely. We must not forget our customers, who expect a secure and stable supply of electricity at rational and affordable prices, particularly in these economically difficult times in Europe.  We understand that Poland is on-track to meet its 2020 non-ETS reduction target, and is also expected to reach its renewables target.”

The Presidents met with journalists in the margins of a Conference co-hosted by EURELECTRIC and PKEE. The Conference will examine the State of the Energy Union and address the next steps to achieve the Energy Union, including measures at the EU level, the Member States’ role in the process, as well as the power sector’s contribution. European Commission Vice-President for Energy Union Šefčovič will deliver a closing key note speech. EURELECTRIC’s contribution to the Energy Union process, a paper that highlights the benefits of better cooperation between Member States through examples and makes concrete proposals on how to achieve the Energy Union, will also be presented during the event.