In his speech, Mr. Piebalgs invoked the six work areas of the Green paper on energy – issued by the European Commission on 8 March – among which the clear objective of “ continuation of the EU’s leadership in addressing global climate change. Initiatives such as the EU Emissions Trading Scheme and ambitious targets for renewable energy should play an important role in shaping our energy policy” featured strongly.

The wind sector is asking for mandatory targets for 2020 and beyond; reaching at least a share of 20% for renewables as recommended by the European Parliament. Between now and then, the current national targets should be made mandatory. Setting targets encourages investors, enables stable technological developments and cost reductions, and encourages research investments – in other words, targets give the sector perspective.