Resources Ministry explains renewable energy targets

There were no renewable energy targets to meet by 2010, the Resources Ministry said in reaction to a follow-up performance audit submitted to Parliament.

The ministry said that, according to an EU directive and the Renewable Energy Action Plan, Malta aimed to generate two per cent of the energy consumed between 2011 and 2012 through renewable sources. The country was committed to increase the percentage to 10 per cent by 2020.

It welcomed conclusions reached by the Auditor General in his follow-up report, which, it said, indicated Malta was registering progress in the use of renewable energy.

The ministry listed action being taken to draw energy from wind, the sun and waste.

The study was requested by the Public Accounts Committee during its deliberations of the performance audit report on renewable energy and energy efficiency in Malta, published in September 2009.

The follow-up audit noted initiatives that stimulated the use of renewable energy in Malta, addressing recommendations proposed in 2009. It said Malta’s progress amounted to only one third of its 2010 projected renewable energy targets indicated in the National Renewable Energy Action Plan.