Statoil Asks for Predictable Energy Policies
Statoil called on European politicians to work for a well-functioning energy market, claiming that more predictable and market oriented policies would increase investors’ confidence.
“The good news is that it can be done. The ongoing process in Europe of establishing an energy and climate policy framework post-2020 is a golden opportunity to achieve this,” Statoil natural gas senior vice president Rune Bjørnson said at a conference in Brussels earlier this week.
Bjørnson asked for a “more flexible CO2 emissions trading system,” while endorsing a single CO2 target with at least 40% emission cuts in 2030. In other words, Statoil echoed other industry participants’ call to avoid a secondary target on renewables.
Statoil, which is the second-largest supplier of gas to Europe after Gazprom, said that a functioning energy market could pave the way to a low-carbon future, with natural gas playing a central role and coal progressively losing ground.