GE becomes exclusive industry sponsor of European-wide cities initiative on climate change
Copenhagen, December 13, 2009. GE (NYSE: GE) announces today that its 'ecomagination' initiative is to support phase 2 of the EUCO2 80/50, Europe's biggest and probably most ambitious cities initiative to reduce urban greenhouse gas emissions. The announcement was made at the COP15 summit.
Europe's large metropolitan areas are responsible for some 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Today, 15 major European metropolitan areas, representing a collective population of 48 million or approximately 10% of the population of Europe, are involved in the EUCO2 project, led by the metropolitan region of Hamburg, Germany. Their ambitious target is to reduce their emissions by 30% by 2030 and by 80% by 2050, compared to 1990 levels.
All of the EUCO2 80/50 cities have already produced inventories of their CO2 emissions and are now developing carbon usage reduction strategies. In addition to supporting the initiative financially over the next two years GE will also contribute its expertise as a global leader in clean technologies.
"We are delighted to support this ambitious climate protection initiative. We believe that urban and metropolitan centres are key in the drive to address climate change as they are estimated to produce approximately 75% of the greenhouse gas emissions globally", said Steve Fludder, GE's vice president of ecomagination.
GE, through our own ecomagination initiative, has initiated a programme to develop cleaner technologies designed to reduce carbon impact as well as setting targets to significantly reduce its own carbon footprint. Through our sponsorship of EUCO2 80/50 we will translate this knowledge to assist the 15 participating metropolitan areas, to achieve the proper mix of cleaner, more energy-efficient products, that will help them meet their ambitious goals."
Last year GE spent more than $6billion on R&D, $1.4billion of which was spent in the development of new cleaner technologies.
Commenting on the sponsorship announcement Mr. Roger Read, Secretary General of METREX (Network of European Metropolitan Regions and Areas) said; "GE's support will be very beneficial in helping our member cities to implement strategies to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions by 80% by 2050."
"The EUCO2 80/50 project is a positive example of what can be achieved below the national and international level by committed metropolitan authorities. There are many issues that can only be addressed effectively at the level of the city region and climate change is one of these. Only a metropolitan area can bring together the energy, social, economic, transportation, environmental and planning interests that need to, collectively, decide how to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and make this happen."
The cities and metropolitan regions participating in the initiative are; Brussels, , Frankfurt, Glasgow, Hamburg, Helsinki, Ljubljana, Madrid, Napoli, Oslo, Paris, Porto, Rotterdam, Stockholm, Stuttgart, Torino,.
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Unique tool: Greenhouse Gas Inventory Protocol (GRIP)
To develop effective mitigation strategies to reduce their CO2 emissions by 80% in 2050, the EUCO2 80/50 metropolitan areas need qualified data on their energy usage and greenhouse gas emissions to date. The Greenhouse Gas Inventory Protocol (GRIP), developed by Dr. Sebastian Carney of Manchester University, is a unique tool to deliver this data to politicians and municipalities. It is a computer programme that inputs data on emissions from the national returns to the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) to give metropolitan inventories of energy usage and the resulting greenhouse gas emissions. This data is then used as a basis to explore mitigation strategies to reduce energy demand and decarbonise energy supply.
GRIP is officially recommended by the Joint Research Centre of the EU. It considers the interests of all stakeholders in a metropolitan area and contributes to collectively explore CO2 reduction options for the cities. On basis of the GRIP data, the effectiveness of CO2 reduction activities can be measured, e.g.: could urban areas could generate more of their energy needs themselves? Could transportation could be powered by non-carbon fuels? Could buildings and the way they are used could be changed to drastically reduce energy use?
EUCO2 80/50 is co-operating with the European Covenant of Mayors to make GRIP available across Europe's main urban areas and to establish it as the main policy making tool for informed urban mitigation policy making. The Covenant of Mayors is an initiative of the European Commission that brings together the mayors of Europe's most pioneering cities in a permanent network to exchange and apply good practices across these cities and beyond to improve energy efficiency significantly in the urban environment.
About GE
GE (NYSE: GE) is an innovative and diversified technology company taking on the world's toughest challenges. From aircraft engines and power generation to financial services, healthcare, and television programming, GE operates in more than 100 countries and employs about 300,000 people worldwide. For more information, visit the company's Web site at www.ge.com.
About EUCO2 80/50
The EUCO2 80/50 project has been initiated by METREX in 2007. METREX, the Network of European Metropolitan Regions and Areas, is a network of over 50 of the 100 major metropolitan areas of Europe. Today, 18 major European metropolitan areas partner in the EUCO2 project, led by the metropolitan region of Hamburg, Germany. Their target is to reduce their emissions by 80% in 2050 and by 30% in 2030, compared to 1990. For more information, visit www.euco2.eu.
Greg Farrett
GE Corporate Executive Director - Communications
[email protected]
+32-2-235-6912
Hugh Gillanders
GE
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+3222356914
Rainer Scheppelmann
Roger Read