Osterkorn in Istanbul: emerging markets critical to EE future
Istanbul, 03.06.2010 - REEEP International Secretariat
“China and India are both making major strides in energy efficiency,” noted Marianne Osterkorn, REEEP’s Director General at a conference focusing on energy efficiency held by the U.S. Department of Energy (DoE) and co-sponsored by the American-Turkish Council, “China aims to reduce its energy intensity by 20% by 2030 and India has just launched an energy efficiency mission which will boost EE across all sectors in India. With Asia accounting for the heaviest growth in energy consumption in the coming years, this is where energy efficiency really matters, and REEEP is pleased to support a variety of energy efficiency initiatives targeting China and India.”
She spoke on a panel entitled Responding to the Energy Efficiency Challenge, which also included Cathy Zoi, Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy from the DoE and Ambassador Richard Jones, Deputy Executive Director of the IEA. It was moderated by Merryl Burpoe, Deputy Director for Russian & Eurasian Affairs for the DoE.
In the course of her speech, Osterkorn thanked the government of the United States for its close collaboration over many years. She also shared REEEP’s partnership experience in emerging markets, which shows that “energy efficiency goes beyond mere policy and regulation. In many countries, governments themselves are among the largest energy consumers, and they’re the owners of most utilities. In this regard, governments should use their ownership power to promote energy efficiency by shifting their investment and procurement strategies to reflect its vital importance.”
She spoke to an audience of 200 technology experts, business executives, and government officials from the region, the US and EU. The conference addressed policy and regulatory barriers to energy efficiency, discussed financing options for energy efficiency projects, and helped identify opportunities for businesses and municipal and federal governments to increase revenues by reducing energy consumption.