Today the European Commission has released the long-awaited ‘Clean Energy for All Europeans’ Package, which includes a series of legislative proposals, revisions and supporting texts on energy efficiency, product policy and market design. CECED welcomes the recognition of the role that energy efficiency first shall play in any future EU energy policy.
Says CECED Director-General and Chairman of the Coalition for Energy Savings, Paolo Falcioni: “a 30% binding energy efficiency target is an encouraging sign for the EU home appliance industry. It gives our sector the certainty that it needs to keep investing in innovative energy efficient but also smart technologies that will benefit all EU consumers”.
Indeed, the package also highlights that the proactive participation of energy consumers will play a critical role in managing the supply and demand for energy and the growing penetration of renewable energy sources. Smart appliances are the solution to making EU households active players in this newly-designed EU energy market.
“We are happy to see that the Commission is considering consumers at the core of its energy policy and proposes a fair deal for them. It is in the interest of all that they get empowered and rewarded for the solutions they can offer”, continues Mr Falcioni.
Finally, CECED notes with great interest the inclusion of the new Ecodesign Working Plan for 2016-2019. When choosing products and setting ecodesign requirements, CECED stresses the importance of maintaining the policy’s measurability, enforceability, simplicity and relevance. The policy’s approach must continue to assist the home appliance industry in delivering its contribution to sustainable growth and wealth creation, jobs and energy climate targets.