Daily News 02 / 05 / 2019

U.S. liquefied natural gas exports up by 272% as EU and U.S. host High-Level Business-to-Business Energy Forum to facilitate trade in Liquefied Natural Gas

In their Joint Statement of 25 July 2018 in Washington D.C., President Juncker and President Trump agreed to strengthen EU-U.S. strategic cooperation with respect to energy. They came in particular to an understanding on the benefits of expanded exports of U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) to the EU gas market. Today, top energy business executives from both sides of the Atlantic meet in Brussels to discuss further ways to enhance LNG trade, the role that competitively-priced US LNG can play on the EU market and the growing opportunities for using LNG in the transport sector. This High-Level Energy Forum, opened by Commissioner for Climate Action and Energy Miguel Arias Cañete and U.S. Secretary of Energy Rick Perry, gives American and European businesses the opportunity to chart further actions to fully harvest commercial opportunities in the LNG trade. A press release is available online as well as a factsheet showing the steep increase in U.S. LNG imports. The video of the press point by Commissioner Arias Cañete and U.S. Secretary Perry is available online. (For more information: Anna-Kaisa Itkonen – Tel.: +32 229 56186; Lynn Rietdorf – Tel.: +32 229 74959)

DiscoverEU: 20 000 titres de transport supplémentaires sont à la disposition des jeunes de 18 ans souhaitant découvrir l’Europe

La Commission européenne lance aujourd’hui un nouvel appel à candidatures pour gagner des titres de transport DiscoverEU. Tous les jeunes de 18 ans dans l’Union européenne ont jusqu’au 16 mai 2019 pour présenter leur candidature et avoir peut-être l’occasion de découvrir l’Europe entre le 1er août 2019 et le 31 janvier 2020. Tibor Navracsics, commissaire chargé de l’éducation, de la culture, de la jeunesse et du sport, a déclaré à ce sujet: « Je suis fier de faire progresser l’initiative DiscoverEU et d’offrir à un plus grand nombre de jeunes la chance d’avoir une véritable expérience européenne. J’espère que le fait de participer à l’initiative DiscoverEU les incitera à s’engager dans leur communauté et à jouer le rôle d’ambassadeur pour l’Europe, qu’il s’agisse de voter aux élections au Parlement européen, d’encourager leurs camarades à faire de même ou de s’employer avec nous à la mise en place de sociétés vivantes. Les jeunes sont l’avenir de l’Europe et il est essentiel que leur voix soit entendue. » La Commission a lancé l’initiative en juin 2018 avec un budget initial de 12 millions d’euros; le budget pour l’année 2019 est de 16 millions d’euros. La Commission européenne a proposé d’allouer 700 millions d’euros à DiscoverEU au titre du futur programme Erasmus dans le cadre du prochain budget à long terme de l’UE (2021-2027). Si le Parlement européen et le Conseil consentent à cette proposition, 1,5 million de jeunes de 18 ans supplémentaires auront la possibilité de voyager entre 2021 et 2027. Un communiqué de presse, des questions et réponses et une fiche d’informations sont disponibles en ligne. (Pour plus d’informations: Nathalie Vandystadt – Tél.: +32 229 67083; Joseph Waldstein – Tél.: +32 229 56184)

Coup d’envoi de la campagne “L’UE dans ma région 2019”: des milliers de projets financés par l’UE à l’honneur

Visitez l’Université de Borås en Suède pour voir comment transformer les champignons en combustible; jetez un coup d’œil à la toute nouvelle caserne de pompiers de Covilhã, au Portugal; promenez-vous dans le Centre Energetikum à Pinkafeld, en Autriche, pour comprendre comment l’énergie éolienne et solaire peut être domptée et livrée aux consommateurs. Tout au long du mois de mai, la campagne L’UE dans ma région permettra aux citoyens de découvrir des milliers de projets financés par l’UE grâce à un concours de photos et de reportages. Corina Crețu, commissaire chargée de la politique régionale, a déclaré: « Qu’il s’agisse de nouveau matériel médical pour les hôpitaux, de villages bénéficiant d’un accès nouveau au haut débit ou de petites entreprises ayant un meilleur accès au financement, les investissements de l’UE améliorent le quotidien des gens. Les citoyens n’en sont pas toujours conscients et notre devoir est de mieux communiquer ce que fait l’Europe pour eux, au jour le jour. C’est précisément ce que fait la campagne de l’UE dans ma région. » (Pour plus d’informations: Christian Spahr – Tél.: +32 2 295 00 55; Sophie Dupin de Saint-Cyr – Tél.: +32 229 56169)

 

EU strengthens its support to stabilisation in areas liberated from Da’esh in north-eastern Syria*

The European Union has adopted a new €18 million programme to support stabilisation work in areas liberated from Da’esh by the Global Coalition in north-eastern Syria. The new programme will contribute to the provision of basic services, such as water supplies and demining, within the governorates of Raqqa and Deir Ez-Zor. It is funded under the Instrument contributing to Stability and Peace and will complement on-going humanitarian and stabilisation efforts by the European Union, EU member states and other partners from the Global Coalition. High Representative/Vice-President Federica Mogherini said: “The European Union has always been at the side of Syrians. Since 2011, we have mobilised around €17 billion to help Syrians affected by the conflict and their host communities. In accordance with the commitments taken during the Third Brussels Conference, we are stepping up our engagement to address humanitarian needs and support stabilisation in the areas liberated from Da’esh. This work is essential to allow the local communities to go back to live in safety and we will never withhold our support to the Syrian people.” As the conflict in Syria has entered its ninth year with continued suffering and a dire humanitarian crisis, the liberation of provinces in north-eastern Syria from Da’esh by the Global Coalition constitutes an important step towards eliminating the threat of the terrorist organisation in the region and remains a priority for the European Union. (For more information: Maja Kocijančič – Tel.: +32 229 86570; Matteo Arisci – Tel.: +32 229 80833)

[updated at 18:30 on 02/05/19]

 

Africa-Europe Alliance: Commissioner Mimica on official visit to Mauritius, a development success story

Commissioner for International Cooperation and Development Neven Mimica is on an official visit to the Republic of Mauritius, where he met Prime Minister Jugnauth and various Members of the Government. On this occasion, he announced a €7.9 million contribution to support the country’s priority to address unemployment and build an innovative Mauritius. Commissioner Neven Mimica said: “The EU has a long-standing relationship with Mauritius, which we believe has made a difference in the country’s development success story. We stand ready to further support Mauritius and today’s €7.9 million programme shows our commitment. It will support employability, education and innovation, and will contribute to the Africa-Europe Alliance ultimate goal of creating sustainable jobs”. This programme aims at improving the relevance of post-secondary and vocational training education in Mauritius to allow more young people from vulnerable groups to study and at enhancing applied research and innovation capacity by enabling collaboration between academia and industry. Commissioner Mimica also met the Secretary General of the Indian Ocean Commission, Hamada Madi, with whom he signed a €28 million regional programme to improve port security and safe navigation in the region. The full press release is available here. (For more information: Carlos Martin Ruiz De Gordejuela – Tel.: +32 229 65322; Elena Gonzalez Verdesoto – Tel.: +32 229 92256)

 

Competition: DG Competition joins the ICN Framework for Competition Agency Procedures (ICN CAP)

On 1 May 2019, as part of its work in the International Competition Network, the European Commission’s Directorate General for Competition joined the new ICN Framework on Competition Agency Procedures (ICN CAP), becoming one of its founding members. The ICN CAP builds on fundamental principles of procedural fairness in applying competition rules. These complement the existing ICN workstreams in this field, and reflect a broad consensus within the global competition community. The Commission has always been an active contributor to the work on procedural fairness in multilateral fora such as the ICN and the OECD. This is because the Commission believes that promoting global procedural convergence is important to ensure that competition authorities across the world can work together effectively on issues that affect consumers and markets, and to provide assurances regarding due process and legal certainty for the companies concerned. The ICN CAP will allow the participating authorities to communicate with each other, listen to potential concerns, and respond if there are questions. The ICN CAP will provide transparency about the rules governing participants’ investigation and enforcement procedures. (For more information: Lucía Caudet – Tel. +32 229 56182; Maria Tsoni – Tel.: +32 229 90526)

ANNOUNCEMENTS

 

 

Members of the College in Florence, Italy, for the ‘State of the Union’ conference

The 2019 edition of the State of the Union conference, organised by the European University Institute, will take place today and tomorrow in Florence. This year the discussions will focus on “21st-Century Democracy in Europe”, stimulating the reflection on the democratic functioning of the European Union, its Member States, and their capacity to respond to the needs of future generations. Today at midday, First Vice-President Frans Timmermans will participate in a panel discussion on “Rule of law oversight in the EU: Can value conditionality be reinforced?”. Later in the afternoon, Commissioner for Trade Cecilia Malmström and Commissioner for Justice, Consumers and Gender Equality Věra Jourová will participate in panel discussions on “A more democratic EU external action” and “30 years after: What has the 1989 democratic transition brought to the countries of Central and Eastern Europe?”, respectively. The full programme of the conference is available here and it will be live-streamed. (For more information: Natasha Bertaud – Tel.: +32 229 67456; Daniel Rosario – Tel.: + 32 229 56185; Christian Wigand– Tel.: +32 229 62253)

Le commissaire Moscovici à Rabat, au Maroc, pour participer aux Assises nationales sur la Fiscalité

Le commissaire Pierre Moscovici, en charge des affaires économiques et financières, lafiscalité et les douanes, sera à Rabat, au Maroc, ce jeudi 2 mai et vendredi 3 mai pour participer aux troisièmes Assises nationales sur la Fiscalité, organisées par le Ministère de l’Économie et des Finances du Maroc sous le thème « Équité fiscale ». Lors de son déplacement à Rabat, le Commissaire rencontrera également le chef du Gouvernement, Saadeddine El Othmani, le ministre de l’Économie et des Finances, Mohamed Benchaaboun, le gouverneur de la Banque Centrale du Maroc, Abdellatif Jouahri, et le président de la Confédération Générale des Entreprises du Maroc (CGEM), Salaheddine Mezouar. (Pour plus d’informations: Vanessa Mock- Tél.: +32 22956194; Enda McNamara – Tél.: +32 229 58615; Patrick McCullough – Tél.: +32 229 87183)

European Battery Alliance: Vice-President Maroš Šefčovič  to meet Peter Altmaier and Bruno Lemaire in Paris today

Vice-President Maroš Šefčovič is in Paris today to meet Peter Altmaier, the German federal minister for economic affairs and energy and Bruno Lemaire, French minister for economic affairs and finance. France and Germany announced a bilateral cooperation on an industrial project in the field of energy innovation. The announcement follows the third meeting of the European Battery Alliance (EBA) which took place earlier this week in Brussels. The European battery industry has been identified as a strategic value chain for the EU in the context of a strengthened industrial policy strategy. Batteries are a key enabling technology and will be essential for the automotive industry of the 21st century. They will play an important role in the decarbonisation of the European mobility sector and the transition towards a low carbon economy. Therefore European-produced batteries will become a key driver for the EU’s industrial competitiveness. The joint press conference by Vice-President Maroš Šefčovič and the French and German Ministers will be available on EbS at 15:00. (For more information: Anca Paduraru – Tel.: +32 229  91269; Lynn Rietdorf – Tel.: +32 229 74959)

Commissioner Jourová participates in a conference on European elections and on 5G security in Prague

Tomorrow Commissioner for Justice, Consumers and Gender Equality, Věra Jourová, will be in Prague, Czechia, to speak at a conference on European elections in the context of hybrid threats. She will explain what the EU does to secure free and fair elections, including fighting against disinformation, building resilience in the cybersecurity sector and stepping up the EU’s counterintelligence operational capacity. Czechia is participating in the European cooperation network on elections set up following the Election package announced by President Juncker in his 2018 State of the Union speech. In the afternoon, the Commissioner will deliver a closing speech at the Prague 5G Security Conference, organised by the Czech National Cyber and Information Security Agency. The event will be opened by Prime Minister Andrej Babiš and by Tomáš Petříček, Minister of Foreign Affairs. It will bring together experts on 5G networks and cybersecurity from the EU, NATO states and other countries. Commissioner Jourová will present the European Commission’s action to reinforce cybersecurity and data protection. In particular, she will focus on the Commission’ recent Recommendation on 5G cybersecurity adopted by the European Commission in March, and the General Data Protection Regulation, which has significantly increased data and cybersecurity to prevent data breaches in the EU. (For more information: Christian Wigand – Tel.: +32 229 62253; Sophie Dupin de Saint-Cyr – Tel.: +32 229 56169)

 

 

Upcoming events of the European Commission (ex-Top News)