Orgalime, the voice of European technology providers, congratulates the EU institutions for the successful conclusion of the political process for the European Union to ratify the Paris Agreement. “With less than one year from reaching the international deal, this is record time for Europe to decide on ratifying an agreement and does much to revive confidence in the EU’s capacity to achieve its political commitments.  This was essential - we cannot afford to lose time or be less ambitious on as critical an issue as leading the transition to a low carbon, energy and overall resource efficient economy!” states Adrian Harris, Director General of Orgalime.

The good news is that this decision of Europe and its Member States will give confidence in the EU’s energy and climate policy and will be good for stimulating investment in low carbon, energy and resource efficient technologies.

At the same time, Europe’s ratification of the Paris Agreement needs to be urgently followed up with timely and determined concrete actions and measures at home: “With this milestone, delaying concrete policy measures in Europe or reducing their level of ambition are no longer an option. Now we expect the Commission to deliver both on time and on track with its pending policy proposals including, in particular, on the energy efficiency package and proposal for a new energy market design”, added Harris.

Energy efficiency is increasingly acknowledged as an energy source in its own right at world level. Investments into energy efficiency solutions are growing considerably, although unfortunately much more quickly outside Europe. And this is the challenge for Europe: to translate its energy and climate commitments into reality at home. Technologies manufactured in Europe are ready – policy makers, please move now!