Validation workshop concludes RECIPES
On 7 December 2006, a workshop was organised at which the results of the RECIPES project were presented to a selection of
stakeholders. The workshop was attended by representatives of the EC, UNEP, NGOs, renewable energy industry, country representatives,
consultants and academia. The workshop was hosted by the European Commission, DG Research. Mr. Rosetti di Valdalbero of the Commission
introduced the workshop by explaining the objectives of the RECIPES project and its relation to current and future EU policies.
The results of the study were subsequently discussed in two sessions, the first dealt with the present situation and market potential
for renewable energy technologies, the second with the socio-economic impact, opportunities for EU industry and overall recommendations.
Both sessions started with an introduction by the project team, followed by discussion and finalised by concluding remarks of the rapporteur
of the workshop, Mr. Eric Martinot (Tsinghua University / REN21).
Present situation and market potential
After an introduction on the RECIPES study, the results of the study with regard to the current situation and future market potential were
presented by Mr. Emiel Hanekamp (Partners for Innovation, RECIPES project team). In the subsequent discussion, a number of issues were raised
with regard to the results of the study and market potential for renewable energy in general. It was mentioned by several participants that
no up-to-date information is available on the current use of renewable energy in their country, while especially in the past few years
spectacular growth rates have been achieved. The collection of renewable energy figures is therefore a moving target. The Recipes team
explained that already during the study the results were updated where possible (so not all figures date back to 2003). Furthermore,
the scenario approach developed in the study aims to contribute to tackle the problem of rapidly changing markets by taking into account
the possibly high growth rates.
The rapporteur, Mr. Martinot concluded the session with a number of comments. In his opinion the focus on applications rather than general
technologies in the study is an important contribution to the debate on RE in developing countries. Mr. Martinot furthermore stressed the
importance of a strong policy: everything that has been achieved in the last 15 years is the result of aggressive policies.
Socio-economic impact, opportunities for EU industry and recommendations
The second session of the workshop started with an introduction by Mr. Peter Vissers (Partners for Innovation, RECIPES project team) on the
results of the study regarding socio-economic impacts and opportunities for EU industry, and the project’s overall recommendations. In the
discussion that followed, a remark was made regarding the high possible socio-economic benefits of biofuels. Biofuels represent one of the
fastest growing RE options and already create a high number of jobs and other local benefits. Furthermore, it was mentioned that only 10%
additional investment is necessary to steer investment in energy towards clean, RE options – the costs of using non-renewables will in the
end be much higher.
The rapporteur, Mr. Martinot, concluded the workshop with a number of remarks. He stressed that still little information is available on socio-economic impacts, therefore it is difficult to draw conclusions. Furthermore, he stressed the importance of cost issues – in most cases this is the decisive aspect in developing countries. With regard to the opportunities for EU industry, Mr. Martinot mentioned that a stronger message to the business community could be given, to provide them with the answer to their main question: ‘are developing countries worth our attention, and if so, which countries’.
With regard to the recommendations section of the Recipes study, Mr. Martinot mentioned that this is a very good part, and that he agrees with each recommendation made. He indicated that there is a need for follow up: the RECIPES project has resulted in a valuable mine of information, the question is now how to use it in the best way.