Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2005-06-06-Speech-1-068"
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"en.20050606.12.1-068"2
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".
Madam President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, I would like to start with warm thanks to Mrs Laperrouze for the splendid work she has done and above all for the collegial spirit in which all groups were enabled to have input into the report.
The report is, I think, a good one, in that it clarifies our need for more trans-European energy networks if we are to achieve the Lisbon goals, which have to do with making our continent more competitive. Two things are clear: firstly, that networks are needed within Europe, and secondly, that there is no guarantee that they will be problem-free. Far from it: it follows that integrated networks can result in a problem transferring itself to other networks, although security of supply is generally enhanced.
What is also needed is an increased supply in the shape of the diversified supply of energies, especially of course of crude oil and natural gas. I will take this as an opportunity to observe that you, Commissioner, someone whose dedication I otherwise greatly respect, were not present at the commissioning of the important pipeline from Baku to Ceyhan by way of Tbilisi. The presidents of the countries involved were there, as was the Energy Secretary of the United States of America, but there was, alas, no sign of Europe’s Energy Commissioner or, indeed, any other Commissioner. When such an important pipeline is built in a region covered by the European Union’s neighbourhood policy, connecting a potential Member State of the European Union, or at any rate a country with candidate status, I would have liked the photograph to include you – not just because I like seeing you in pictures, but because it would have had symbolic significance for the European public, indicating that this European Union of ours cares just as much about energy as does the administration of the United States. I am well aware that the American administration was behind the building of this pipeline, but we ought also to have made our presence visible. It may be that you were not invited or that you could not be there, but perhaps you could give a brief explanation of your absence either today or on some other occasion.
There are two other things I would like to mention. You are quite right to say, Commissioner, that we have to bear in mind that there are certain projects of European interest, and that these must be supported accordingly. I agree that the European Coordinator can be important, and so I would like to endorse what has been said by certain Members, including Mrs Laperrouze, to the effect that this House needs to be consulted prior to his appointment, although the appointment itself is of course a matter for the Commission.
To recapitulate, I believe that energy supply is vital to our continent’s competitiveness, that we need a diversity of sources of energy, including those from outside the EU, and I hope that Commissioner Piebalgs will be able to be present the next time an important pipeline is opened, thereby demonstrating the importance of energy supply to Europe."@en1
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