Aware of the threats posed by climate change on future generations and keen to help mitigate the impact, the Principality of Monaco is fully committed to implementing an ambitious energy and climate policy. The aim of this policy is to limit the Principality’s energy footprint and enable it to meet the international commitments it adopted as part of the Kyoto Protocol with regard to the reduction of its greenhouse gas emissions.
The Principality aims to achieve the following targets by 2020:
• To reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 30% compared to 1990
• To improve energy efficiency by 20% compared to 2007
• To use 20% of final energy derived from renewable energy sources
• To maintain peak electric consumption equal to or lower than the level of 2006
• To guarantee the country’s strategic functions by using the means of production existing on Monegasque soil and whose source of supply is not dependent on a sole foreign country
• To reach these targets without hindering the country’s economic development.
For such purposes, the Principality has implemented an Energy Climate Plan in order to develop this exemplary energy policy capable of enabling it to achieve, or even surpass, these targets.
This Energy Climate Plan consists of three focus areas:
• Control of energy demand: improved energy efficiency and limited power consumption and peak demand
• Local energy production: urban waste to energy, development of renewable energies
• Reduction of greenhouse gas emissions: direct (Kyoto) and indirect (electricity, travel) emissions.
For each of the above areas, technical, regulatory, financial and awareness measures have been implemented in the following sectors: land-use planning, state property (new and old buildings), private buildings (new and old) and energy supply.
Energy climate plan certification:
The Government decided to endorse its energy climate plan in 2012 by a certification programme via the European Energy Award (EEA). This programme has been adopted by over 1,000 communities in Europe and confers an award to countries that have put a quality management system into place for their energy climate plan.
The European Energy Award is a cross-disciplinary steering and control instrument which identifies the strengths and weaknesses of a community’s energy policy, as well as the potential to improve it.
It also integrates other environmental issues such as water management, waste and mobility.
Obtaining certification is dependent on the assessment of 6 areas:
1. Development and spatial planning;
2. Heritage;
3. Energy-water-sanitation;
4. Mobility;
5. Internal organisation;
6. Communication-cooperation.
For each of these areas, an assessment was carried out in 2012, followed by the establishment of an action plan consisting of 55 task sheets in 2013. The majority of the Government’s departments are involved in this process.
The certification phase was conducted by independent external auditors. In November 2014, the Principality obtained European Energy Award certification, thus encouraging the implementation of the energy climate plan.
The action plan, established for the next four years (2014-2018) will enable us to make continuous improvements with a view to obtaining EEA Gold certification by 2018. This involves consolidating and enhancing the measures already implemented in order to achieve the targets set regarding the energy climate plan and sustainable development on a broader level.
