Denmark’s experience comes in handy for Tomsk Oblast
Denmark’s 40 years of experience in energy efficiency and energy saving practices can be used in Tomsk Oblast, believes Tomsk Oblast Duma Speaker
Oksana Kozlovskaya summarizing the results of her meeting with the Danish Ambassador to Russia Mr.
Tom Risdahl Jensen.
The meeting was also attended by Tomsk Oblast Duma Deputy Speaker
Aleksander Kupriyanets and Consul General of Denmark in St. Petersburg
Klaus Sorenson. The Danish diplomats came to Tomsk with representatives of Danish companies specializing in energy saving technologies to participate in the 15th Crossregional Congress
"Energy Saving 2012". Danish and Tomsk businesses have already implemented a number of successful joint projects in Tomsk Oblast.
"We have got only positive impressions of Tomsk. It is an old city, and it is cozier and warmer than Moscow. We did not expect that so much focus is given in Tomsk Oblast to modern technologies. The capital of the region has plenty of R&D resources which form a basis for further development of the region’s production and research potential. Tomsk Oblast has got the greatest R&D development potential and we intend to expand our cooperation horizons here," the Ambassador said.
The Danish diplomats were pleasantly surprised with the knowledge and experience of Tomsk Oblast Duma Speaker Oksana Kozlovskaya. She told the guests about the country’s and the region’s energy saving and energy efficiency efforts and existing barriers to investments in energy saving projects.
“Today, Russia focuses a lot of effort on this area and Tomsk Oblast is among the leaders. Over the last decade we've been modernizing boiler houses in the region to using more energy efficient fuel. For three years we have been implementing a program to install energy meters in budget-funded organizations and dwelling houses. The program is described in detail in the regulatory acts adopted in the region. We understand that energy efficiency initiatives are expensive and there are two ways to fund them – include the costs either in the tariff, or in the budget. We use both these ways. The budget is a trigger: we are helping companies and organizations to make the first step towards investing their own money. Although individuals’ financial solvency improves year over year, the rate is not enough to support an adequate growth of tariffs. Moreover, there is an effective Russian Government Decree which restricts any bills increase for the population. That is a limiting factor but this Decree is necessary. At the end of the day, on the one hand there is the budget which cannot afford big spending and on the other hand, there are people who are unable to pay for this swift modernization. In this respect Denmark’s experience in working on energy saving issues with countries such as Kazakhstan, Belarus and Ukraine can come in handy for Russians as well.”
Oksana Kozlovskaya agreed with the Ambassador that “the notion of energy efficiency is not at all hostile”:
“All technologies related to the field of energy efficiency are acceptable and applicable in life. Properly implemented, energy saving systems will improve the lives of people, help the environment, and help save money which could be spent on social needs and economic growth. Forty years ago, when Denmark faced the problem of making its energy utilization more efficient, people were deterred by the notion as such. They were afraid that energy efficiency initiatives would deprive them of their jobs, impact their welfare and undermine the national economy. However, we see now that the quality of life has actually improved, environmental standards have got higher, the economy has grown and energy usage has dropped. As for tariffs, it is important to do everything possible to keep prices low. Financial tools are available to make any project sustainable, i.e. save money and generate additional capital to help your business grow,” the Ambassador commented.
Tom Risdahl Jensen emphasized that for regions embracing energy efficiency it is very important to recognize that they need to improve not only the business climate in general but also the legislative climate. Setting adequate standards in environment, energy saving and energy efficiency is particularly important.
“Looking at opportunities to enter a market, business evaluates the available regulatory framework,” he said.
“In this respect we would like you to get familiar with the production enterprises while you are in Tomsk,” Oksana Kozlovskaya noted. “I believe, the efforts the government is making today to help business develop, are well worth seeing and especially in our region as it has significant human resource potential. First, companies working in the Tomsk SEZ have preferences which save them up to 30% of costs and that is where we can find resources. Second, here you can see how these technologies can be implemented in construction of buildings and structures.”
Oksana Kozlovskaya thanked the Danish Ambassador and all delegates on the diplomatic mission for the meeting and presented them on behalf of the Tomsk Oblast Duma the coat of arms of Tomsk Oblast made of silver and a book about Tomsk.
“This object is charged with luck. I wish you success and hope you will find here reliable partners and good friends!”.
