I am very honored to welcome you here as co-host of this important conference.

Let me begin by sharing a few tangible examples of what we will discuss today.

This morning, many of you likely turned on the lights: if you used an LED bulb, it consumed 90% less energy than a traditional bulb.

Then, most of you took a shower. If you heated water with a heat pump or solar water heater instead of a standard boiler, that could save a family nearly 900 euros per year in Europe.

These examples illustrate a crucial point: energy efficiency holds immense potential for savings.

Next, I want to highlight the main challenges we face in Europe and globally regarding energy policy.

The first challenge is accessibility and affordability.

Hundreds of millions lack access to clean energy.

Companies struggle to compete due to high energy bills.

Simultaneously, we are confronted with a severe climate crisis that is worsening.

Moreover, energy policy is also about security for many nations.

How can we address energy poverty effectively?

Clearly, energy efficiency must be central to our initiatives.

Although energy poverty is often associated with developing countries, it is also a significant issue in Europe, where 1 in 10 Europeans face this risk. Last winter, 47 million people could not adequately heat their homes.

This issue demands our attention.

We usually focus on increasing renewables, which is justified: the IEA estimates that from 2021 to 2023, we saved nearly 100 billion euros on energy bills in Europe thanks to renewables.

However, the savings potential for most households and companies through known energy efficiency technologies is even larger.

Yes, it requires investment, but these investments yield quick returns.

For industry, every euro spent on energy efficiency translates to an average savings of four euros in a few years.

For households, the return is even higher: one euro spent on energy efficiency leads to twelve euros in savings. The potential is vast.

Now, regarding climate change. This is likely the greatest challenge we face.

While there is conflict on our continent, I believe peace will prevail.

Though we face strained relations across the Atlantic and ongoing trade wars, stability will return, and solutions will be found.

Unfortunately, climate change remains the most pressing challenge for all of us, and it is already causing catastrophic consequences.

Lives are at stake.

Thus, it is a moral imperative to confront this challenge.

Climate change disproportionately impacts the most vulnerable regions.

Even in Europe, we are witnessing its effects. We experience the fastest rising temperatures. Therefore, we must act.

Energy efficiency measures in Europe alone can contribute to a 40% reduction in emissions.

Improving energy efficiency in buildings can reduce carbon intensity by up to 60%. Buildings account for 40% of our energy consumption, making this potential enormous.

Now, let’s discuss security.

This will vary depending on your region.

However, I must take a moment to address the tragic war in Ukraine.

As the EU, we are doing everything possible to support the Ukrainian people and government. Unfortunately, the energy sector has been severely affected by Russian attacks, and we are allocating substantial resources to assist.

However, this conflict also impacts Europe.

During my tenure as Denmark’s Minister for Climate and Energy, I was involved from the beginning of the full-scale invasion in February 2022. In those early days, we devoted all our efforts to emergency planning. We had to determine which companies to shut down. We were prepared to send law enforcement to enforce these closures if necessary. This was almost incomprehensible, but it was essential. Why? Because if Putin had cut off gas supplies overnight, we would have needed to ensure our hospitals could operate and that our citizens would not freeze.

Denmark wasn’t the most affected country in Europe. Had Russia halted gas supplies, with 45% of our gas coming from them at the time, we would have faced a recession and a severe crisis for millions.

This situation taught us a valuable lesson: relying on a single energy source is unsustainable, especially if that source is hostile.

We quickly shifted our strategy from emergency plans to reducing this dependency.

Since then, weve reduced our energy imports significantly. We previously sourced 51% of our coal from Russia; now we source none. Our oil imports dropped from 27% to 3%, and gas imports fell from 45% to 13%.

We will not stop here. We sent a clear message to Russia: no more. We will no longer allow you to weaponize energy against us or blackmail our nations. We will not indirectly fund the Kremlin’s war efforts.

We achieved this by diversifying our energy supplies and reducing gas usage through energy efficiency measures.

As we tackle the final 13%—about 36 bcm per year—some wonder: “How can we do this without raising prices?” Part of the answer lies in reducing gas consumption by 15 bcm annually. We are making rapid progress in the right direction due to energy efficiency.

Thus, to combat climate change, provide affordable clean energy for our citizens, and ensure our security, energy efficiency must be at the heart of everything we do. We have made substantial progress in Europe and worldwide.

However, it is insufficient and too slow. We need to accelerate our efforts, and that is what we will discuss in the coming hours and days. I am delighted to be here!

…

Finally, I want to share my priorities for the mandate entrusted to me by President Von Der Leyen for the next five years.

I have identified 10 action areas focusing on energy efficiency, which include:

• mobilizing public and private investment financing,
• strengthening the integration of energy efficiency solutions into energy systems,
• supporting cooperation among stakeholders—such as financial institutions and energy efficiency solution providers;
• enhancing international cooperation on energy efficiency—both at conferences like this and through concrete bilateral and multilateral collaborations.

We are commencing immediately. We have already initiated several efforts—you may have noticed.

We are focusing on five major action areas, including:

• a guarantee scheme for energy efficiency solutions, prepared in collaboration with the European Investment Bank. I aim to double the current level of energy efficiency services by facilitating financing access, particularly for small and medium-sized enterprises.
• Developing tripartite contracts for energy efficiency solutions to scale projects and reduce barriers for rapid implementation;
• Finally, I will propose a data center energy efficiency package since data centers are increasingly consuming nearly 3% of the EUs electricity demand.

In the Commission, we are also committed to advancing our global pledge. We are mobilizing 300 billion euros from our Global Gateway initiative towards sustainable infrastructure investments, including energy efficiency.

Lastly, we will provide leadership and foster cooperation through the Global Energy Transition Forum launched by President Von Der Leyen.