UfM Senior Officials meet in Barcelona to prepare the UfM Ministerial Conference on Energy and finalize the Mediterranean Solar Plan

Barcelona, 5 November, 2013. Senior Officials of the UfM Member States convened, on 4 November 2013, at the headquarters of the Union for the Mediterranean, in Barcelona, at the invitation of the UfM Co-Presidency, the European Union and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. The objective of the meeting was to discuss the final version of the Mediterranean Solar Plan – Master Plan, and the draft Ministerial Declaration for the coming first Union for the Mediterranean Ministerial Meeting on Energy, set to take place on 11 December 2013, in Brussels. At the end of the meeting, representatives from Member States and stakeholders expressed their support to the Mediterranean Solar Plan (MSP) and expected relevant decisive actions for the coming Ministerial Meeting. The meeting was the final step leading to the Ministerial Meeting on Energy, during which the Mediterranean Solar Plan is expected to be endorsed.

Fabrizio Barbaso, Deputy Director General of the European Commission´s Directorate General for Energy, said at the opening of the meeting that the MSP embodies a ‘comprehensive framework for regional cooperation on renewable energy and energy efficiency, developed together by Member States and institutions concerned, partner organizations, private business and civil society’. Member States highlighted the ambition of the MSP process and the strengthening of future cooperation on Energy in the region, as planned in the Ministerial Declaration.

Participants emphasized the importance of the implementation phase for the MSP, which will constitute a unique opportunity to reinforce and enhance mechanisms of cooperation in the field of renewable energy and energy efficiency, with a strategic approach to the promotion of investments and relevant proper financial support mechanisms.

The MSP was launched in July 2008 at the Paris Summit by the Heads of State and Government of the then 27 EU Member States and 16 Southern and Eastern Mediterranean Countries. It aims to substantially increase power generation from renewable sources, mainly solar and wind, in the region, setting a target of 20 GW of installed capacity by 2020. It also aims to enhance the use of energy efficiency technologies and to help compress energy demand increases.

The MSP Master Plan is the result of intensive work, jointly developed by the UfM Members, the European Commission, the League of Arab States and other relevant stakeholders such as financial institutions, industry organizations, and regional and sub-regional platforms and projects. Once adopted by the Ministerial Meeting, the MSP Master Plan will provide a regional strategic framework and policy roadmap.