MEPs have called on the European Commission to draw up a green jobs strategy by 2011 that should include “specific policies” to speed-up Europe’s transition to a green economy.

The report outlining the call to action on green jobs was drawn up by MEP Elisabeth Schroedter and adopted by the European Parliament meeting in Strasbourg on Tuesday.

A green jobs strategy should include more and specialised training in green jobs, more funding, and incentives to encourage companies to invest in clean technologies, Schroedter’s report said.

José Manuel Barroso, President of the European Commission, has called for the completion of an internal market for energy. Speaking at his first ‘State of the Union’ speech in Strasbourg today, he said “energy is a key driver for growth and a central priority for action.”

“We need to do for energy what we have done for mobile phones: real choice for consumers in one European market place”, he told MEPs at the European parliament’s September plenary session.

For renewable energies, he said Europe needs to “have the infrastructure for solar and wind energy.”

Mongolia, wind turbine by Elke Zander

Mongolia has recently indicated it wants to become part of an international green energy revolution by harnessing vast amounts of wind energy for export to its power-hungry neighbour China.

Stories and blog postings last week reported that the remote land-locked country in northern Asia has indicated it would like the development of wind, solar and other renewable energies to be subsidized by the nation’s considerable mining projects.

A Wall Street Journal posting noted that Mongolian Prime Minister Sukhbaatar Batbold discussed at a special cabinet meeting in the Gobi Desert the county’s plans for massive investments “in alternative energy and to export wind power to China — enough to equal 40 million tons of coal.”

During the last weekend in August, wind power met the demand for electricity for the first time in the north and northeast of Scotland. In Dundee, Perth, Aberdeen and Inverness wind power kept the lights on, the washing machines turning and the kettles boiling from 8.00 on Saturday 28 August to 9.00 on 29 August.

Just over 700 MW of wind energy was produced in that time frame, while consumer demand for electricity was just under 700 MW, Scottish and Southern Energy (SSE) said.

Alan Broadbent, from Scottish and Southern Energy Power Distribution, said that this “milestone demonstrates that wind farms can produce substantial amounts of energy, as part of a diverse mix, and that electricity networks can accommodate it.”

Wind power companies and French citizens are waiting for an announcement later this month that the nation is finally going to capitalize on its extensive coastline and enter — in a big way — the growing offshore wind sector.

News reports and various websites are publishing stories saying that Environment and Energy Minister Jean-Louis Borloo is expected to announce in September initial tenders for offshore wind farms that will include up to 600 wind turbines.

Agence France Presse says the tenders will relate to 10 billion euros to build 3,000 MW of offshore capacity at five to ten sites in Normandy, Brittany and the regions of Pays de la Loire and Languedoc by 2015.