The Mediterranean basin brings together several countries, resulting in a highly diverse regional energy mix: significant amounts of fossil fuels, nuclear energy and high renewable energy potential, especially for solar energy. These different natural resources and energy production channels can be divided into coherent geographic areas. Significant levels of fossil fuels exist to the south of the Mediterranean, as well as the potential to develop solar energy. Countries to the north have developed nuclear energy and have the potential for wind energy. As a result, certain mutual interests in energy supply could be better exploited between countries north and south of the Mediterranean.

However, energy exchanges between these countries have so far been limited to commercial gain. The countries of the North import the equivalent of 90% of the natural gas exports and 50% of the oil expo...

The Mediterranean basin brings together several countries, resulting in a highly diverse regional energy mix: significant amounts of fossil fuels, nuclear energy and high renewable energy potential, especially for solar energy. These different natural resources and energy production channels can be divided into coherent geographic areas. Significant levels of fossil fuels exist to the south of the Mediterranean, as well as the potential to develop solar energy. Countries to the north have developed nuclear energy and have the potential for wind energy. As a result, certain mutual interests in energy supply could be better exploited between countries north and south of the Mediterranean.

However, energy exchanges between these countries have so far been limited to commercial gain. The countries of the North import the equivalent of 90% of the natural gas exports and 50% of the oil exports of the producing countries in the South (Algeria, Libya) without generating local economic added value. These same southern countries have built their economies on the basis of the profit made from fossil energies, without encouraging the conditions that would favour a regional market. We should clearly therefore no longer regard energy in the Mediterranean as the simple exploitation of primary resources.
   
If sustainable partnerships are to become a reality in the energy sector, common steps need to be taken in the areas of energy efficiency, the reduction of Co2 emissions and technical exchanges. Education, research and development play a primary role. A regional project relies on identifying current and future educational requirements, recognizing vocational courses, developing research in North and South, and technology transfers.

In this context, the priority should be an energy partnership between Mediterranean countries.

Production/consumption:

-    Open up the energy sectors of the Mediterranean basin countries to non-carbon energies
-    Define objectives for saving energy and reducing greenhouse gas emissions in all countries of the region
 
Operators/Networks:

-    Make energy companies the actors in regional energy integration, by increasing the means of the Mediterranean Energy Observatory and financing a major annual Euro-Mediterranean meeting bringing together public and private energy decision-makers
-    Encourage action by Euro-Mediterranean networks, energy management agencies, regulators and electricians

Commercial trade/partnerships:

-    Maintain long-term agreements for purchasing energy (gas in particular) between UfM countries, including delivery guarantees
-    Secure investments in SEMCs and facilitate participation agreements between countries in the region, with a focus on accelerating ...

Production/consumption:

-    Open up the energy sectors of the Mediterranean basin countries to non-carbon energies
-    Define objectives for saving energy and reducing greenhouse gas emissions in all countries of the region
 
Operators/Networks:

-    Make energy companies the actors in regional energy integration, by increasing the means of the Mediterranean Energy Observatory and financing a major annual Euro-Mediterranean meeting bringing together public and private energy decision-makers
-    Encourage action by Euro-Mediterranean networks, energy management agencies, regulators and electricians

Commercial trade/partnerships:

-    Maintain long-term agreements for purchasing energy (gas in particular) between UfM countries, including delivery guarantees
-    Secure investments in SEMCs and facilitate participation agreements between countries in the region, with a focus on accelerating the Mediterranean Solar Plan

Training:

-    Create a Euro-Mediterranean network of knowledge transfer on energy and the water-energy intersection (Mediterranean Institute for Science and Techniques on Energy and Water)

Governance:

-    Associate SEMCs to European strategic reflections from the first discussions
-    Put into place a shared governance structure: Euro-Mediterranean Energy Community.

Unlike other economic sectors, most countries south of the Mediterranean possess natural resources, energy potential and technical expertise, giving them the potential to take part in a broad range of regional projects with long-term benefits. However, the significant regional energy challenges call for a redefinition of the framework of commercial exchanges in this area. An energy partnership between the two sides of the Mediterranean appears increasingly evident. It was in this spirit that a project emerged to create a Euro-Mediterranean Energy Community.

European Union member states have fixed a common target of reducing their CO2 emissions by 8% by 2012 in comparison with 1990, and imposed measures to constrain their energy-intensive industrial sectors (i.e. energy sector, mineral industry, production and transformation of ferrous metals and pulp production). This measure does not apply to countries  south and east of the Mediterranean, which are not on the list of countries that have historically contributed to the global rise in greenhouse gases. Thus, only companies North of the Mediterranean currently appear concerned by the effects of the carbon constraint. Nevertheless, Europe’s ambitions to reduce its energy consumption whilst developing clean electricity production, its intention of extending the quota system on European emissions to international activities, the question of carbon leakage, and the absence of benefits for ...

A genuine energy partnership between North and South Mediterranean must be accompanied by a vast regional project on research training and development, involving industrials, training institutes and laboratories. Due to the increased use of innovative technologies, development of large regional projects in energy infrastructure, and economic constraints inherent to new technological procedures, research centres and industrials tend to pool their skills by regrouping into clusters or competitiveness clusters. The current growth of training centres and competitiveness clusters in the region creates essential axes of development to respond to the energy issues of the future.