“Europe is facing a difficult balancing act, as it navigates the energy challenge. Whilst striving to maintain its green ambitions, our political leaders cannot sacrifice competitiveness or strategic autonomy. It only takes a system failure of a couple of seconds for an entire national energy supply to go down, as we recently experienced in Spain. We need stronger national and cross-border networks to power Europe’s economic growth. EFCA has considered what a resilient European energy system looks like and our recommendations are intended to help policy makers”, states Inés Ferguson, the EFCA President, as the federation launches its illuminating report.
Highlighting the over-dependency on fossil fuels and the weaknesses in a centralised energy system that must meet the increasingly decentralised production and consumption energy patterns, the report concludes that we are at a tipping point in terms of the capacity of the energy system to fulfil the EU’s growing demand.
Since the resilience of critical infrastructure is a hot topic in political and business fora alike, EFCA highlights the need for an integrated approach. Consulting engineers are among the few stakeholders capable of providing solutions, owing to their skills but also direct knowledge of the European energy infrastructure across economic sectors and countries.
Jeffrey Seeck, Chairman of EFCA’s Future Trends Committee, adds: “From where we stand as engineers, the challenge is clear. Decentralise risk, diversify supply and put engineers in the room when the decisions are made. Neither the EU institutions nor the Member States can afford second-best solutions for such a critical sector.”
Significant investment coupled with rapid policy and legislative changes will be needed to adapt the energy system, but smart solutions can offset the initial costs. Reducing energy imports and the associated economic and political instability, will ensure that the energy infrastructure is ready to withstand the many natural and man-made challenges.
As the recent European Commission proposal for the next Multiannual Financial Framework will trigger numerous debates in the coming period, EFCA urges European and national policy makers to seize this opportunity, to ensure that the resilience of energy infrastructure will be at the heart of such debates. Without a strong and stable energy sector, the EU’s resilience and competitiveness will falter.
Press contact: Sue Arundale, Director General
EDITOR’S NOTE: EFCA has member associations in 27 countries and is the sole European federation representing the business interests of professional engineering consultancy and related services, a sector that employs more than one million staff in Europe.