To the kind attention of Jean-Claude Juncker, President of the European Commission

Cc: College of Commissioners

Brussels, 24 November 2016

Dear President,

The business community has high expectations on the ambition of the forthcoming “Clean Energy for All” package. We attribute a strategic importance to this proposal as it will give a political signal to the business, financial and investor community, not only in Europe but at global level as well.

As the representatives of the business sector, we welcome the commitment of the Commission on the ‘Efficiency First principle. We call for this principle to be reflected in the forthcoming proposals for a “Clean Energy for All” package by the European Commission through a 40% EU binding target for energy efficiency and an ambitious revision of key legislations, notably the Energy Efficiency Directive and the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive.

Regulatory certainty is fundamental to providing the private sector with the signals they need to make investment decisions and to incentivize the market to take up of new business models and services for clean energy and energy efficiency. Models such as those presented in our recent publication “Strategic investments for Europe: Evidence from cost-effective energy efficiency stories”.

The current non-binding 27% target barely corresponds to business as usual. Europe must increase the scale and rate required to meet its Paris climate commitments and if we want to secure a cost-effective energy transition, both a binding ambition for energy efficiency and clear long-term vision are needed.

Energy efficiency is not only a business opportunity, it is a societal imperative. Increased competitiveness for European companies will go hand in hand with economic recovery and the creation of local, longterm jobs. By using energy more wisely Europe can significantly reduce the EU’s gas import dependency and reduce EU greenhouse gas emissions in a cost-effective way.

The ratification of the Paris agreement was a proud moment for the EU. The European Commission has an opportunity to embody this commitment and show leadership from the highest political level by making efficiency the pillar of the Energy Union strategy in next week’s package.

Thanks for your attention,

Harry Verhaar

Head of Global Public & Government Affairs

Philips Lighting

Alix Chambris

Director of EU public affairs

Danfoss

Didier Teirlinck

Executive Vice President

Ingersoll Rand

Gene Murtagh

CEO

Kingspan

Sian Hughes

Director of External Affairs

Knauf Insulation

Bertrand Deprez

Vice President EU Government Affairs

Schneider Electric

Roland Ullmann

Director Industry Affairs – Building Automation

Siemens

Monica Frassoni

President

European Alliance to Save Energy (EU-ASE)

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