1) The speaker is attending the founding Assembly of the Board of Trustees of the Regional Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (RCREEE). 2) The RCREEE will help tighten Euro-Mediterranean links to efficiently meet energy demand in the region through cleaner energy sources and energy savings. 3) The European Commission will support RCREEE through two initiatives totaling €9.06 million, which will be demand-driven and coordinated by RCREEE, to strengthen renewable energy and energy efficiency policies in the region.

1. EUROPEAN UNION
DELEGATION OF THE EUROPEAN
COMMISSION IN EGYPT
Speaking Points of Ms Raffaella Iodice de Wolff
First Counsellor – Head of Operation Sector
Regional Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency
RCREEE
Draft Version, 28 January 2009
Speaking points:
• Your Excellency Dr. Hassan Younes, Excellencies, Ambassadors, Ladies
and Gentlemen,
• I am very pleased to be on this podium today to attend the founding
Assembly of the Board of Trustees of the Regional Centre for Renewable
Energy and Energy Efficiency.
• In our view the taking up of activity of this Center is a timely event. It
happens against the background of the necessity to develop new,
cleaner energy sources and to save more and more energy.
• Recognising this necessity European and Meaditerranean Leaders have
put the Mediterranean Solar Plan as a priority for regional cooperation
on their agenda. A point to which I will refer later.
• An active Center also allows us to tighten the Euro-Mediterranean links in
order to satisfy the energy demand around the Mediterranean in an
efficient, harmonious and mutually advantageous manner.
• Before detailing the EC Support, allow me your Excellency, to underline
the excellent level of cooperation between the Ministry of Electricity and
Energy and the three development partners.

2. • In our view this project is an excellent example of donor coordination
along the needs of beneficiary countries, and sharing responsibilities in an
efficient and effective way.
• While the support of both GTZ and DANIDA to RCREEE will be from
the operational side to get the Centre up and running, the support of the
EC is following the demand-driven approach.
• Demand-driven approach means that the beneficiary countries
themselves will define the projects which the Centre will implement.
This will ensure a high level of ownership of the projects and hence
build the sustainability of this Center from its early beginning.
• In operational terms, this demand-driven approach will be carried out
through two regional EC initiatives which the Centre will not only host,
but also coordinate parts of them.
• The first initiative is the Euro-Mediterranean cooperation for Energy
Market Integration (Euro-Med EMIP) which amounts to € 4.06
million. This initiative is supporting several thematic areas such as:
1. Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency policies
2. Public-Private-Partnership for Renewable Energy (RE) & Energy
Efficiency (EE)
3. RE & EE research and technology policies and programmes
• MED-EMIP will play a catalytic role to reinforce the EU-
Mediterranean Partner Countries energy cooperation with particular
emphasis on securing energy supply, promoting sustainable development
and giving a boost to the regional integration process.
• The second initiative is the second phase of the Euro-Mediterranean
cooperation in the field of Energy Efficiency (Euro-Med ENEC II) for
€ 5.0 million.
• MED ENEC II has four key activities: (1) raising awareness of the
potential and the feasibility of EE measures; (2) disseminating
information on best practices, (3) negotiating agreements with public
bodies with the aim of developing EE schemes; (4) building the necessary
auditing, accreditation or installation capacities to support these
undertakings

3. • With the foreseen regional role of the Centre this initiative will speed up
the development of the regional expansion of implementing various
Energy Efficiency applications, especially in the construction sector and
related industries.
• It is important to highlight the fact that complementarities regarding
policy dialogue between these two regional initiatives will be
strengthened by the Centre and accordingly will streamline Renewable
Energy and Energy Efficiency policies throughout the entire region.
• Moreover, the European Commission is providing support to the
Centre through the establishment of a state-of-the-art Management
Information System (MIS) in order to permanently connect the Centre
with similar European Institutions like UNEP-RISO of Denmark, DLR of
Germany and BAS of Spain.
• The sequencing of the provision of this support is to go hand in hand with
the start-up of operating of the Center as well as the provision of support
by the other donors.
• Another potential avenue of cooperation and a key topic for the Center to
tackle refers to the recently launched Euro-MED Solar plan as
mentioned before.
• I’m pleased to inform that the EC has just launched a technical assistance
mission to identify together with the Centre how the Euro-MED Solar
Plan will be implemented.
• Finally, the Commission would like the Center to benefit from its
Research & Development financial instrument FP7. € 2.35 billion,
were allocated to fund research as regards energy for the period
2007-13.
• Mediterranean countries are eligible to participate in the competition for
these resources. In the framework of this programme and in line with
activities to be performed by RECREE, renewable energy and energy
efficiency sectors are considered as top priorities.
• Let me finish by expressing our fondness that this Centre is now fully
endorsed. 10 MENA Partner Countries (Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia,
Libya, Egypt, Jordan, Palestine, Yemen, Lebanon and Syria) are

4. represented as we can see from the number of participants attending
today.
• Under such high level auspices, we have no doubt that the Regional
Centre will give rise to fruitful exchanges and at the same time highlight
issues and opportunities and to open avenues for cooperation.
• With its operation we should get deep insight on how to proceed putting
in motion a sustainable development policy in the fields of renewable
energy and energy efficiency.
• Finally, let me wish the Center great success. Given its importance in
the area of Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency within the Euro-
Mediterranean partnership the European Commission stands ready to
support it actively within the first years of its operation.