On 24 September 2015 the JBCE Environment Committee welcomed Mr Robert Nuij, Head of Sector Energy Efficient Products at the Directorate General for Energy. In his presentation Mr Nuij briefly introduced the New Energy Union Strategy and the dimensions it is based on, before subsequently outlining the EU’s policy framework for energy efficiency.

The Energy Efficiency Directive, Energy Performance in Buildings, Energy Labelling and Eco-Design are the four big building blocks of the policy framework, underpinned by a number of finance initiatives. Mr Nuij singled out two of those – Energy Labelling and Eco-Design – for a more detailed discussion focusing inter alia on the forthcoming revision of the A-G label and the Eco-design Directive’s product group approach.

Topics covered in the subsequent Q&A session include the EU’s 2020 and 2030 energy efficiency targets; the implementation of legislation and market surveillance regarding product compliance; possible mandatory product registration under the Energy Labelling Directive; regulatory focus on systems and components and the role of spare parts under the Eco-Design Directive; and the future link of the Eco-Design Directive to the forthcoming Circular Economy Package.