Be the first to comment!Malta is only EU member state without energy policy – AD
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Alternattiva Demokratika – The Green Party commented on a report presented to the EU Commission by the Malta Resources Authority confirms that Malta that land use decisions taken in the past years have penalised the development of renewable energy.
Ralph Cassar, AD spokesperson for Energy, Industry and Transport, said, "The report notes that the decision taken by Lawrence Gonzi’s cabinet of ministers in April 2005 to allow penthouses on three storey developments has led to a situation where most apartments have no roof space to install solar water heaters. The same report also notes that the fact that 43108 dwellings are vacant all year round means that more than one in five dwellings in Malta and one in every three in Gozo cannot be used for this purpose."
"The way forward in this sector is to through the introduction of a seriouus long term plan on building heights, a solar rights bill and the introduction of penalties for any development which blocks access to sun light. The fact that the government has procrastinated on the development of near shore windfarms by opting for deep water windfarms in 2007 – a decision which was only changed following the last election, is leading to great uncertainity on Malta’s renewable energy targets. it is also shameful that Malta is still without an energy policy. This speaks volumes about government’s lack of seriousness and priorities."
"The report points out that the projects planned for Malta are relatively small and do not benefit from economies of scale. Had Malta opted to build near shore windfarms three years ago, we might be facing less uncertainity."
Michael Briguglio, AD Chairperson added, "Unfortunately there is a gap between the rhetoric put forward by Government and actual policies on renewable energy. Government’s decision to restrict incentives for solar panels, and Government’s procrastination with regard to the introduction of a proper feed-in tariff to the benefit of users of renewable energy are two cases in point."
