Hereby you can read a letter that INFORSE-Europe members sent to the EU Commission.
The proposal of "block exemption" of sustainable energy support schemes just mean that such schemes should be exempted from state aid rules so the countries do not need to notify them with the EU Commission, a proces that can take a half year and that constantly delays such schemes.

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September 15, 2005

European Commission
Directorate General for Competition
E-mail : Stateaidgreffe@cec.eu.int

Responding to your call for comments on reform to state aid rules, we would like to draw your attention to the specific views and needs of the promoters of sustainable energy organised by the International Network for Sustainable Energy – Europe, as stated below. In this context and throughout this letter sustainable energy is defined as sustainable use of renewable energy and energy efficiency.

In line with findings of your own Directorate General and of other EU institutions such as the European Environmental Agency of overwhelming state support to the coal and nuclear sector on a level harmful to the environment as well as to a proper functioning of the market, we urge you to include a fast phase-out of any state aid to these sectors in the coming state aid rules.

In order to enable a development of sustainable energy and give it fair access to the market in the current conditions with the above- mentioned distortions and without effective internalisation of external costs in energy costs, sustainable energy needs effective financial support. The best way state aid rules can contribute to this is with a block exemption for sustainable energy. Thus, we urge you to include a block exemption for sustainable energy in the new state aid rules.

If you have any questions to the above, or are interested in further information on the proposals, please do not hesitate to contact INFORSE-Europe, e.g. by email to ove@inforse.org.

Gunnar Boye Olesen