Statement delivered by Union of the Electricity Industry - EURELECTRIC, Federation of Electric Power Companies - FEPC, and Edison Electric Institute - EEI, on 31 August at the Side Event "The Contributions of the Electricity Industry to Sustainable Development"

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT: ELECTRICITY INDUSTRY AFFIRMS COMMON GOAL TOWARDS ENVIRONMENTALLY RESPONSIBLE PRACTICES

"The electricity industry affirms a common goal of providing a reliable, affordable and environmentally responsible supply of electricity to meet the quality-of-life aspirations of every nation's citizens". This is the core message of a joint statement adopted by Union of the Electricity Industry-EURELECTRIC, the Federation of Electric Power Companies (FEPC) and Edison Electric Institute (EEI), the three major associations representing the electricity industry in Europe, Japan and United States of America respectively. The statement, made public on 31 August on the sidelines of the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, underlines that "the electricity industry is committed to helping to meet" the "enormous challenge" of achieving sustainable development, while stressing that the electricity industry "cannot achieve sustainable development working in isolation and wishes to engage in open dialogue and develop partnerships with a range of other stakeholders".

The statement, unveiled at a side-bar event in Johannesburg, confirms the electricity industry's support for the Summit's aim "to reinvigorate at the highest political levels the global commitment to sustainable development agreed upon ten years ago at the Rio Earth Summit". Underlining that electricity is "uniquely qualified in meeting the goals of sustainable development - social responsibility, environmental stewardship and economic development for a growing world population" - the statement is formulated, in line with the motto of the Summit, under three headings: People (the social pillar), Planet (the environment pillar) and Prosperity (economic pillar). The three associations have drawn up a set of key principles which should be recognised by industry, policy-makers, regulators and society so as to ensure that these common goals can be achieved.

People: Electricity is a key element in achieving the social dimension of sustainable development. The electricity industry respects the needs of its own employees and of wider society. In developing countries, access to electricity is vital for economic growth and for raising living standards. More than two billion people still do not yet enjoy the most basic benefits of electricity, which are a decisive factor for the alleviation of poverty and social exclusion.

Planet: Electricity industry activities significantly impact the environment. However, the electricity industry has been applying diverse technologies and strategies, both on the supply and demand sides, to substantially reduce these impacts. Electricity can power both technologies which are clean at the point of use, and clean-up techniques that deliver environmental improvements. Therefore, electricity is also an important part of the solution towards achieving sustainable development.

Prosperity: The electricity industry's business is to produce and deliver electricity to its customers. The electricity industry invests massively in infrastructure, technology, research and development, and human resources, contributing to the economic development, increased productivity and prosperity of the communities and countries where it operates. Therefore, policies and measures should be developed to create clear frameworks and incentives within which the electricity industry can operate.

Contacts: EURELECTRIC: Chris Boothby +32 2 515 1041; cboothby@eurelectric.org, FEPC: Toshio Nishizawa +81 3 3279 2340; nisizawt@fepc.or.jp; EEI: Quin Shea +1 202 508 5027; qshea@eei.org. Websites of the three associations respectively: www.eurelectric.org; www.fepc.or.jp; www.eei.org