Future Energy Leaders Program
Detailed program — Thursday, September 16, 2010

The resources of our planet are limited and their availability is interdependent. Providing enough energy, water, food and biomass for the planetary population can be a daunting task, as we need to allocate sufficient resources for each use. Biofuel production using land, water, equipment and fertilizers previously dedicated to food production is probably the best example of that new concern. Collaboration between different sectors is essential.

Energy sustainability cannot be the concern of a single country, continent or even the concern of rich countries alone. Energy sustainability can only be addressed as a worldwide project. It has to grow from a multitude of local initiatives that complement one another, and add their contributions toward a shared global view of what must be achieved.

Technology transfer is essential to developing countries, empowering them through knowledge. Technology transfer is not limited to power generation, since energy issues also encompass environmental and developmental issues. How is it possible to leverage the expertise available across all energy sectors to respond to the specific needs of different regions of the world?

Building a better energy future will be very expensive. Capital for new projects will be difficult to attract at a time when the financial resources of the planet are limited and required for many other pressing needs, such as education and health care. Attracting capital requires a viable balance between risk and return, and this depends on consistent energy prices. Building a better future has a price. Refusing to face this reality can be far more expensive.

The development and implementation of sustainable energy projects in a timely and efficient manner requires good control systems to supervise all aspects of the project and ensure they meet increasingly stringent environmental and social requirements. Good management tools are needed to track costs and ensure regulatory compliance. This involves long term planning, close financial supervision and legal counselling.

Regulation is the basic tool to implement policy. As national policies change and evolve in response to the new realities of a fast changing and increasingly interdependent world, to so do regulations need to change in order to serve their original purpose. We need to adapt our regulatory frameworks continuously to help create the environment were such an industry can grow and develop the way it was expected. A permanent and close examination of the regulatory framework is therefore required to follow the effects of regulations and update them as needed to ensure they are indeed useful. It is also increasingly necessary to see that regulations are compatible as we seek to develop more efficient regional markets and need to build transboundary infrastructures to enhance energy security.