Abu Dhabi – As 20 per cent of the world’s population – around 1.3 billion people – do not have access to energy, it becomes imperative for our society to find new ways of developing and delivering sustainable energy for the world.
Representing Vestas, the global leader in wind technology, at the World Future Energy Summit that took place on January 16-19 in Abu Dhabi, Juan Araluce, President, Vestas Mediterranean, spoke at the Business & Policy Forum, ‘Business Leaders in Future Energy – Insights from the Executive Suite’ about the role that wind can play to deliver sustainable energy for all and what is needed to make it happen.
Juan Araluce reminded all business leaders and political representatives attending the forum of some of the critical challenges the wind industry is facing nowadays: the current financial crisis affecting the investments in renewable projects; the regulatory uncertainty experienced in mature markets; and the green “protectionism” existing in new markets.
The main recommendations presented in Abu Dhabi to support the development of wind energy were the following:
- Develop public-private partnerships in countries where the business case certainty is too low to attract private investment, but where there are clear public benefits to be obtained.
- Provide a stable renewable energy policy and the subsequent regulatory framework.
- End fossil fuels subsidies in the light of clear economic and environmental benefits.
- Set a robust price on carbon to send a strong signal to the market, change people’s behaviours and investments’ directions.
- Enable free green trade eliminating tariff and non-tariff trade barriers to accelerate the green technologies and the development of sustainable energy.
- Reinforce investments in research and development to favour innovations in renewable and sustainable energy.
“As the wind industry leader with more than 30 years of expertise, Vestas is convinced – and has data to prove it – that wind can be on par with oil and gas,” explained Juan Araluce, who has recently been appointed Global Chief Sales Officer, Vestas Wind Systems.
2012 has been declared by the United Nations the Year of Sustainable Energy for All. The UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon declared at World Future Energy Summit that doubling the share of renewable in the global energy mix by 2030 is a very ambitious target but it’s a reachable one.
“At Vestas, we believe that wind energy can play a key role in achieving this objective: it is a mature, free and renewable energy, which provides security of supply, without consuming water or emitting greenhouse gases. Moreover, if all external and operational costs are considered, wind can clearly compete with traditional energy sources – making possible to face both economic and environmental challenges,” he concluded.
Source: Masdar and Reed Exhibitions.
