Respected scientist lobbies for renewable energy quotas

A national quota for emission free generation based on existing renewable energies -- mainly small hydro and biomass -- would give an overwhelming advantage to France in a deregulated European electricity market, according to Philippe Chartiez, a new French lobbyist in Brussels. Alternatively, a quota calculation based on new renewables development would also give France a big advantage since existing potential for wind and biomass has been barely tapped. The former head of research in the French agency for environment and energy management (ADEME), Chartiez is now lobbying on behalf of the Syndicat des Energies Renouvelables with a group of industries including small wind turbine manufacturer Vergnet and solar company Giordano. Chartiez is a respected biomass scientist in France, known for his leadership of ADEME's research department during difficult years when government support was scarce. At ADEME's national conference on wind energy last month in Dunkirk (page 19), Chartiez argued for a framework for a protected competitive market under a European Directive on renewable energies. He was backed by most industry and professional groups present. Even executives in charge of renewable energies at utility Electricité de France -- not generally known for its sympathy towards renewables -- seemed to support the idea.