Developing the energy sector to achieve climate neutrality will bring benefits to the population, both in terms of energy availability, prices, and also in terms of social welfare and social security, senior official with Romania’s Ministry of the Environment, Waters and Forestry (MMAP) Ionut-Sorin Banciu told an informal meeting of EU environment ministers on Tuesday, write Agerpres.

„Developing the energy sector to achieve climate neutrality will bring benefits to the population, both in terms of energy availability, prices, and also social welfare and social security. Therefore, presenting clear information, not only for the public and private sectors, but for the whole society, will contribute to understanding the benefits of the energy transition. At the same time, our messages should assure vulnerable citizens of our deep concern for a just transition and a fair sharing of the burden,” Banciu said.

Regarding the 28th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 28) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Romanian official emphasised that it „should provide concrete results in terms of mitigation, adaptation and loss and damage, transparency and accountability, solutions based on nature and human rights.”

„We need to find a balance between funding provisions and increasing ambition in terms of global climate action. In order to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement, we expect a clear roadmap to reset climate ambition on the right track. At the same time, this should allow us to make informed decisions based on data predictions and act in accordance with real expectations. For the upcoming COP28, we believe that the solution to revitalising climate ambitions must be linked to security of supply issues, the benefits for local communities and a broad picture of long-term development and innovation, taking into account starting points and national specifics.”

The informal meeting of EU environment ministers took place between July 10 and 11 in Valladolid, Spain. Organised under the auspices of the Spanish Presidency of the EU Council, the event brought together EU environment ministers, and officials of the European Commission and the European Parliament. Minister of the Environment, Waters and Forestry Mircea Fechet led the Romanian delegation on the first day of the event.

Also participating on the last day of the informal meeting were EU energy ministers, and the meeting included two joint working sessions related to expectations from the 28th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 28) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), which will take place in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates, November 30 – December 12, 2023, along with the contribution of the energy sector to this conference.