EPEE Comment on the Draghi Report : EU Competitiveness and Decarbonisation Can Go Hand-in-Hand

Brussels, 18 September 2024: The European Partnership for Energy and the Environment (EPEE), representing manufacturing companies and associations operating in the refrigeration, air-conditioning and heat pump (RACHP) industry in Europe, supports the call for a comprehensive EU plan that combines decarbonisation with competitiveness included in the report by Mario Draghi, The future of European competitiveness, released last week.

“Our members operate more than 100 factories and research & development centres across 22 European countries, employing hundreds of thousands of people,” said Russell Patten, EPEE’s director general. “We are fully invested in a competitive and energy-independent European Union. Without stronger demand and concrete up-take support measures, EU competitiveness is at risk.”

EPEE is dedicated to policies that help decarbonise the EU, including REPowerEU, the Energy Efficiency Directive, and the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive. Heat pumps offer an enormous opportunity to reduce dependence on foreign oil, since heating and cooling represents half of the energy consumed in Europe.

“Our sector stands ready to boost European competitiveness and decarbonise buildings and industries,” said Patten. “The swift publication of the Heat Pump Action Plan, delayed during the last mandate, is the remaining piece of the puzzle that will fully enable our technologies to achieve the Green Deal objectives.”