Last week, the discussion about Acer’s move reached a temporary climax when the Supreme Court ruled that the decision to link Norway to the European Energy Agency is not unconstitutional. Now several people say that the Acer judgment may push other laws that “bar” against the Norwegian border. An overview from the Ministry of Oil and Energy (OED) shows that there are 64 legal acts. – The Acer verdict gives room to increase the pressure on the government, says Ola Elvestuen (V). He adds that there are “certainly some of these rules that could be better adapted to Norwegian conditions”: – But my view is that all should be incorporated into Norwegian law. Despite everything, I am an EU supporter. (See response from Oil and Energy Minister Terje Aasland further down.) Ola Elvestuen (V) will not listen to explanations that it is the civil service that is the brake block. – It is a political responsibility to see through, he says. Photo: Annika Byrde / NTB – It is completely understandable that this is still not part of Norwegian legislation – the Supreme Court gives Jonas Gahr Støre legal backing to maintain the incorporation of EU rules in the energy field, writes editor in Energi og Klima, Anders Bjartnes. Une Bastholm (MDG) points to a signal in Dagbladet that the EU’s fourth energy market package (the “Clean Energy Package”) can be put on hold out of consideration for the internal cooperation climate in the government. – It is completely nonsensical and serious at a time when we need more cooperation across national borders, she says. – The little that is currently being cut from emissions happens for three reasons: forward-leaning local politicians, forward-leaning business and international, binding cooperation in the EU and the UN. Last week, the Climate Committee 2050 made a point that it “should not be unclear” whether Norway will participate in new and more ambitious versions of the EU’s climate regulations. In an interview with Dagbladet, the parliamentary leader of Sp, Marit Arnstad, says that the third energy market package was on the table for almost ten years before it was adopted in Norway, and suggests that the plan for the fourth energy package (2019) may be the same. Photo: Javad Parsa / NTB Bård Baardsen of the Norwegian Heat Pump Association owes the Ministry of Oil and Energy for “dragging its legs”. “For years there has been a culture where parliamentary decisions and EU directives on energy efficiency have been practiced”, he writes in a chronicle at the Altinget. He says to news that it is “completely incomprehensible” that the EU’s energy efficiency directive from 2012 is still not part of Norwegian legislation. In order to ensure that the same rules apply throughout the EEA area, implementation should initially take a maximum of two years. In the budget document for next year, it is stated that the ministry will “consider more closely” what they want to do with the directive from Brussels. – We are working to reduce the backlog, but for the government it is important that we ensure that Norwegian interests and the peculiarities of the Norwegian energy system are taken into account, says Oil and Energy Minister Terje Aasland. He points to the government’s preoccupation with constitutional review and that “every legal act is therefore assessed very thoroughly”. – If someone thinks that neighborliness in such processes is uncultured, they have to bear their own responsibility. – Strengthened ambitions in the energy sector mean a greater volume of EU legislation with frequent revisions. The regulations are very extensive, and this entails time-consuming processes, says Oil and Energy Minister Terje Aasland. Photo: Gorm Kallestad / NTB – We must take part in the common European effort An analysis from NVE shows that energy saving in Norwegian buildings can reduce energy use by 13 terawatt hours (TWh). This corresponds to almost 10 per cent of Norwegian electricity consumption. – We are now seeing the result of the ministry slowing down. We are about to have a power deficit in Norway, says Ove Guttormsen, who is managing director of Nelfo. He adds: – Our contribution to the energy transition cannot be limited to power exchange. We must also take part in the joint European effort. In 2022, Norway received criticism from the International Energy Agency (IEA) for not investing enough in energy efficiency. According to the IEA, energy efficiency is the most environmentally friendly measure to limit global warming. Meeting of the EEA Council in November – The willingness in the ministry to introduce good policy for energy efficiency works far less than the will to join the EU’s power market, says Sofie Marhaug in Raudt. In October, Norway was “shut down” by EFTA’s monitoring body (Esa) for falling behind schedule and not even being able to reach the old target of a 40 per cent cut by 2030. – Instead of waiting for long explanations, we could get a expedited processing where we incorporated sensible rules into Norwegian legislation, says Marhaug. Energy efficiency of the building mass can reduce energy use and emissions, and at the same time free up electricity for the green shift.Oddgeir Sæle/news The EU’s climate package “Ready for 55” (Fit for 55) will ensure that the EU achieves the goal of reducing emissions of greenhouse gases by 55 percent from 1990 to 2030. “Ready for 55” is the largest package of EEA-relevant laws that the EU has ever adopted. When Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide spoke to the Storting’s European Committee in October, he emphasized the importance of Norway (and the other EFTA countries) not opposing the new climate package. – Delays will weaken Norwegian climate policy and negatively affect the integrity of the internal market. It will be unfortunate not only from a climate policy point of view, but also from a business policy point of view, as these are our most important value chains, he said. On 20 November there is a meeting of the EEA Council, which is the highest cooperation body between the EU and the EEA/EFTA countries. Barth Eide will provide information on how the implementation of various energy and climate directives is going in Norway. The Government: – I want to emphasize that energy efficiency is an important area of focus Oil and Energy Minister Terje Aasland: – I also want to emphasize that energy efficiency is an important area of focus for the government. Earlier in the autumn, we launched the action plan for energy efficiency in all parts of the Norwegian economy, which builds on the existing framework conditions and an extensive toolkit that is already in place. I would also like to highlight Prop. 96 LS (2022–2023) on the incorporation of the building energy directive into the EEA agreement and related changes in the energy act, and that the ministry has recently sent changes to the energy label regulations to implement the directive for consultation. It is also worth mentioning Prop. 100 L (2022–2023) on excess heat and energy mapping, which was originally drawn up to be in line with requirements in the energy efficiency directive of 2012 (2012/27/EU). When the legislative changes and related regulations have been determined, the ministry assesses that the regulation in Norway is in accordance with key parts of the energy efficiency directive of 2012/2018.
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The Acer verdict creates pressure to introduce more EU rules – news Vestland
