ENERGY for a CHANGING WORLD

European Union on-line > DG Energy and Transport on-line Commission proposes an integrated energy and climate change package to cut emissions for the 21st Century Mid-term review of the 2001 Transport White Paper Europe Direct Sustainable Energy Europe 2005-2008 [Transport] Compulsory use of safety belts and child-restraint systems: Commission sends reasoned opinion to the United Kingdom Port reception facilities for ship-generated waste and cargo residues: Commission decides to take Belgium and Estonia to the European Court of Justice Safety requirements for tunnels: Commission sends reasoned opinion to United Kingdom Commission approves Greek public financing of three motorways concessions Commission authorises Czech State aid to support purchase of new railway rolling stock Belarus: Commission experts in Minsk for technical talks on energy, transport and environment [Energy] EU and Iraq discuss ways of enhancing Energy Cooperation The Commission asks Poland to correct its procedures for granting rights over oil and gas resources European Commission sends Reasoned Opinion to the Czech Republic regarding the accession to the Safeguard Agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency European Commission recognizes outstanding sustainable energy projects Sustainable Energy Cities take the lead on climate change: the European Commission launches the Covenant of Mayors [ Practical Information ] Public Consultations New Calls for Tenders 21-22 February, 6th European Business Summit, Brussels 31 March - 3 April, EWEC 2008 - European Wind energy Conference and exhibition, Brussels 18 April, SAFETYNET 2nd conference, Rome, Italy More: Road Safety in the web site of Energy and Transport DG Compulsory use of safety belts and child-restraint systems: Commission sends reasoned opinion to the United Kingdom The European Commission has decided on 31 January to send a reasoned opinion to the United Kingdom for failure to transpose the Directive on the compulsory use of safety belts and child-restraint systems in vehicles in Gibraltar, and to notify its implementing measures. This Directive was adopted to increase safety for road users and especially for children. [full text] More: Maritime Transport in the web site of Energy and Transport DG Port reception facilities for ship-generated waste and cargo residues: Commission decides to take Belgium and Estonia to the European Court of Justice The European Commission decided on 31 January to lodge a case to the Court of Justice against Belgium and Estonia for failure to respect EU legislation on better availability and use of port reception facilities for ship-generated waste and cargo residues. [full text] More: Tunnel safety in the web site of Energy and Transport Safety requirements for tunnels: Commission sends reasoned opinion to United Kingdom The European Commission sent on 31 January a reasoned opinion to the United Kingdom for failure to fulfil the reporting obligations under Directive 2004/54 on minimum safety requirements for tunnels. This Directive sets out technical requirements to reach a minimum level of safety of tunnels and shall apply to all tunnels in the trans-European road network, with lengths of over 500 metres. [full text] More: Road Transport in the web site of Energy and Transport DG Commission approves Greek public financing of three motorways concessions The European Commission decided on 30 January not to raise objections to certain measures adopted by the Greek authorities in support of road infrastructure. The Commission considers that grants for the construction and upgrading of such road infrastructure in Greece do not constitute State aid. [full text] More: Sta te Aid in the web site of Energy and Transport DG Commission authorises Czech State aid to support purchase of new railway rolling stock The European Commission has decided on 30 January not to raise any objections to the aid scheme proposed by the Czech Republic to support its railway activities. The measure would contribute to the development of railway transport and is compatible with the proper functioning of the common market. [full text] More: External cooperation programmes in the web site of the European Commission Belarus: Commission experts in Minsk for technical talks on energy, transport and environment Experts from the European Commission met their Belarusian counterparts on 28-30 January in Minsk to discuss technical matters relating to the energy and transport situation in the EU and Belarus. A technical meeting between environment experts will take place on 7 February in Brussels. [full text] Related items: http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/where/neighbourhood/country-cooperation/belarus/belarus_en.htm More: Enlargement and international relations in the web site of Energy & Transport DG EU and Iraq discuss ways of enhancing Energy Cooperation On 31 January the European Commissioner for External Relations and European Neighbourhood Policy, Benita Ferrero-Waldner, and the European Commissioner for Energy, Andris Piebalgs met with the Minister of Oil of the Republic of Iraq, Hussain Al-Shahristani, to discuss enhancing energy cooperation between the European Union and the Republic of Iraq. [full text] More: Oil issues in the web site of Energy & Transport DG Gas issues in the web site of Energy & Transport DG The Commission asks Poland to correct its procedures for granting rights over oil and gas resources Community legislation seeks to ensure non-discriminatory access to and prospection, exploration and production of hydrocarbons. The Commission has noted a number of shortcomings regarding the conformity of the implementing measures adopted by the Republic of Poland. It is feared these will have adverse effects on competition in this sector. [full text] More: Nuclear Issues in the web site of Energy and Transport DG European Commission sends Reasoned Opinion to the Czech Republic regarding the accession to the Safeguard Agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency The European Commission decided on 30 January to send a reasoned opinion to the Czech Republic because of the country's failure to accede to the Agreement between the European Atomic Energy Community, its non-nuclear weapon Member States and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) regarding the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. If the Czech Republic does not take the necessary measures to accede to this agreement, the Commission will have to refer the matter to the Court of Justice. [full text] More: Sustainable Energy Europe web site European Commission recognizes outstanding sustainable energy projects On 29 January six winning projects from four EU member states - Italy, Austria, Hungary and France - were awarded trophies at the Sustainable Energy Europe Awards ceremony taking place under the umbrella of the second European Sustainable Energy Week. The European Commission initiative aims to raise public awareness on the use of renewable energy sources and energy-efficient methods. The winners were awarded for the exceptional work they have already accomplished but, above all, for the commitment they have made to the sustainable future. [full text] More: Covenant of Mayors in the web site of Managenergy Sustainable Energy Cities take the lead on climate change: the European Commission launches the Covenant of Mayors On 29 January the European Commission launched the Covenant of Mayors, the most ambitious initiative to date involving the citizens in the fight against global warming. It comes after an informal consultation with numerous cities across Europe, whose Mayors will join the Commission in launching the Covenant. The Covenant consists of the formal commitment of the adhering cities to go beyond the objectives of the EU in terms of reducing their CO2 emissions through energy efficiency and renewable energy actions. Almost 100 cities throughout Europe, including 15 capital cities, have expressed their early support for the Covenant. [full text] Disclaimer: For a complete list of current public consultations please go to Consultations Public Consultations In this section you will find the newest calls for submissions to public consultations in fields of energy and transport. Topic of Consultation Deadline ERTMS: the European Deployment Plan Stakeholder consultation on the revision of Energy Labelling Framework Directive 1992/75/EEC 28/02/2008 22/02/2008 Disclaimer: For a complete list of current calls for tenders please log on Tenders Electronic Daily New Calls for Tenders The internet service of the DG for Energy and Transport has developed a web page announcing the Calls for tenders & Calls for expression of interest concerning the Directorate General for Transport and Energy. In this new section you will find not only contract notices published in the Official Journal but also, prior information notices, calls for expressions of interest, and the list of contracting parties. Contract Notice Official Journal Time-limit for receipt of tenders Economies of scale: analysis of data on research expenditure on labour and infrastructure Survey of the competitive aspects of oil and oil product markets in the EU OJ S 1-000060 OJ S 247-300716 07/03/2008 05/03/2008 Please note that the announcement of technical reports and documents recently produced in specific energy and transport sectors can be found on the "What's New" pages of the corresponding chapters of Energy and Transport on the EUROPA website. This FREE weekly digest is published by : European Commission, Directorate-General for Energy and Transport Information & Communication B-1049 Brussels - Fax : (32-2) 295.61.18 To log in, subscribe or unsubscribe, click here. 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