28. 1. 85 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 25/23 
crobiological criteria' for fresh meat, it is suggested 
that, the words 'microbiological criteria' be qualified 
by adding 'taking into account Annex A of the pro-
Done at Brussels, 21 November 1984. 
1. OVERALL ASSESSMENT 
The Committee endorses the proposal for a Council 
Decision. A research and development programme 
(optimization programme) within the proposed 
framework will buttress the Community's non-
nuclear energy strategy and might help to promote 
the further expansion of a modern, forward-looking 
hydrocarbons technology upstream of the competi­
tive and energy supply spheres. This means also that 
the programme should not stop in 1987 but should 
be carried forward in accordance with the Commu­
nity strategy. 
Long-term basic research is desirable in order to 
further improve the utilization of oil reserves and to 
maximize the technical and economic yield of petro­
leum products as regards both manufacturing and 
final consumption. 
In the Committee's view, the optimization pro­
gramme pursues a sound aim by tying the necessary 
(') OJNoC 154, 14. 6. 1984, p. 5. posal for a Council Decision (OJ No C 252, 
2. 10. 1981)'. 
The Chairman 
of the Economic and Social Committee 
Gerd MUHR 
basic research to the scientific and practical activi­
ties of the Community so as to increase the advan­
tages that coordination brings in terms of knowledge 
and make possible the permanent stimulation of 
research. It is therefore regarded as a useful comple­
ment to Community hydrocarbons research. 
The funding seems however, to be very meagre, if 
serious possitive results are to be achieved in the 
foreseeable future. Adequate finance should be 
made available to achieve the programme's objec­
tive of stimulating new, integrated and rapidly pro­
ductive research in all the Member States. The Com­
mittee considers that the appropriations should take 
account of the research requirements and should be 
incorporated in the medium-term financial plan, ac­
cording to main points of effort. 
The Committee would comment as follows on the 
orientation of the proposed preliminary and com­
plementary activities: Opinion on the proposal for a Council Decision adopting a research and development 
programme for the optimization of the production and utilization of hydrocarbons 
1984 to 1987 (l) 
(85/C 25/11) 
On 5 June 1984 the Council decided to consult the Economic and Social Committee, 
under Article 198 of the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community, on 
the abovementioned proposal. 
The Economic and Social Committee decided to appoint Mr Binnenbruck as rappor­
teur-general with the task of preparing its work on the subject. 
At its 221st plenary session (meeting of 21 November 1984) the Economic and Social 
Committee adopted the following opinion unanimously: 
No C 25/24 Official Journal of the European Communities 28. 1. 85 
2. GENERAL COMMENTS 
2.1. The Community's energy strategy calls for far-
sighted, shrewd coordination in the analysis of the 
problems, in the interplay between theoretical and 
applied research and in the exploitation of the re­
search findings. The Committee therefore considers 
that good cooperation between all concerned, par­
ticularly between the authorities, industry and indi­
vidual consumer groups, is essential in order to keep 
overall expenditure within limits, to ensure that the 
programme remains attractive and to constantly bal­
ance diverging interests as far as possible. 
2.2. The Committee recognizes that precompetitive 
R&D projects cannot always be clearly defined as 
such, since there is no workable criterion. It notes in 
this connection that the Commission departments 
stand outside the competitive sphere and do not pur­
sue any commercial interests. The aim of the optimi­
zation programme is, however, to identify commer­
cial utility and exploit it for market purposes. It 
seems necessary to lay down clearly whether and, if 
so, to what extent the Commission departments will 
help in exploiting research findings with commercial 
utility for industry and consumer groups. Account 
should be taken here of FAST policy aspects as well 
as the own interests of industry. 
2.3. In the Commission's view, the optimization 
programme represents an instrument for realizing 
the interrelationships between the framework pro­
gramme and sub-programmes for non-nuclear en­
ergy research. It hopes that this will mean fruitful 
use of the resources deployed. The Committee con­
siders, however, that the optimization activities 
should also be directed towards speeding up iden­
tifiable progress towards energy policy objectives. 
Repercussions must also be evaluated, so that opti­
mum efficiency in the use of hydrocarbon reserves is 
achieved in the long-term. 
2.4. The Committee considers this stimulation of 
research to be particularly important because it is 
now foreseeable that fossil energy sources will con­
tinue to form the mainstay of energy supplies for a 
very long time to come (until well into the next cen­
tury). The Committee is at present drawing up an 
own-initiative information report on this subject. 
This report examines in particular the environmen­
tal constraints on the production and utilization of 
energy. The findings of this report, and the extensive 
public debate on ailing forests, damage to buildings, 
emissions from large combustion plants and meas­
ures to control motor vehicle exhaust emissions, 
show that this issue is very rapidly taking on practi­
cal and social importance. This should be taken into account in establishing the 
first stages of the programme and in planning 
further action. 
2.5. Although it is not yet clear what impulses can 
be provided with the budget envisaged, there can be 
no doubt that even in the case of cost-sharing con­
tracts with limited appropriations there will be a loss 
of impetus if no follow-up or additional research 
can be carried out. 
2.6. The Committee considers that the level of 
funding should be reviewed after a certain running-
in period. In the course of this review the existing 
apportionment of unds, viz.: 
— 65 % for rational energy use, 
— 30 % for new processes and techniques, 
— 5 % for protection of the environment, 
should be adjusted so as to give environmental pro­
tection, directly or indirectly, an appreciably larger 
share of the funding. The appropriations must also 
be in keeping with the requirements of the frame­
work programme and the market trend. 
2.7. Finally, the Committee would observe that it is 
necessary to clarify who may utilize research re­
sults. 
3. SPECIFIC COMMENTS 
Points of emphasis in the 'motivations' 
3.1. The Committee endorses the aim of the basic 
research, viz. to increase knowledge in respect of 
hydrocarbon exploration and prospecting, to im­
prove the yield in conversion into finished products, 
to expand theoretical knowledge in respect of recov­
erable oil deposits, and to bring about a better 
understanding of the inter-relationships that deter­
mine the matching between internal combustion en­
gines and their fuels. Here, too, greater account 
should be taken of the environmental problems 
connected with the production and utilization of 
energy. 
3.2. Experience with the conversion of heavy oil 
residues and the processing of crudes with in some 
cases high sulphur contents is varied and has not yet 
been completely evaluated. The Committee recom­
mends that cooperation in this area be stimulated. 
Cooperation could also be intensified in respect of 
the process for producing high-octane gasoline from 
natural gas via methanol; this would be to the ad­
vantage of both industry and the final consumer. 
The possibility of using methanol and higher alco-
28. 1. 85 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 25/25 
hols as fuel for internal combustion engines should 
be examined at the outset as an integral part of the 
investigations. 
The place of the sub-programme in the scientific and 
technical strategy 
3.3. High priority should be given to the efforts to 
achieve a better adaptation of internal combustion 
engines to lower-quality fuels while maintaining per­
formance, since this is not only an energy issue but 
also an overall social and economic issue. The spe­
cific problems of oil conversion should include the 
processes for producing high-octane gasoline from 
natural gas which at present do not seem profitable 
to the industry. Account should be taken here of 
pollution aspects (keeping the air clean, particulate 
emissions). 
Proposed main areas for research and development 
3.4. The Committee considers that the main R&D 
areas should include improvement of basic know­
ledge for the evaluation not only of oil fields but 
also of gas fields. It accordingly recommends that 
this aspect be specified expressly in the pro­
gramme. 
Relationship to other Community activities 
3.5. The committee considers that if there is to be 
efficient coordination of R & D a boundary must be 
drawn between precompetitive activities and current 
and planned demonstration work. Any overlapping 
between these two areas should be avoided in the 
interests of good cooperation with industry and con­
sumer groups. 
The Committee recommends that for any particular 
research project the following stages be folowed: 
— Stage one: 
precompetitive R&D. 
— Stage two: 
Small-scale testing (laboratory work, study of the 
behaviour of models, simulation techniques) 
either numerical or on prototypes. 
— Stage three: 
large-scale development work on real projects 
coupled with field work where appropriate feed­
ing back of the results arising from the first stage, 
and vice versa. 
The first two stages would require limited finance 
and therefore will be covered entirely by the pro­posed research programme. The third stage should 
be taken care of by existing and separate Council 
Regulations. 
Obviously, selection of a specific research project 
within the framework of the proposed R&D pro­
gramme should result in its being given priority in 
other Community programmes such as Regulation 
(EEC) No 3056/73, etc. 
The target should be to integrate research efforts in 
the field so that in the end the Community will be in 
possession of practical results, with a rational idea 
for further research. To achieve this target it will be 
necessary for the various Community administrative 
bodies involved to collaborate closely with one 
another. 
Special points of emphasis for the optimization pro­
gramme 
— Hydrocarbon deposits 
3.6. The Committee considers that knowledge con­
cerning hydrocarbon deposits, which should be im­
proved, would be easier to process if a distinction 
were made between two main categories: 
— clastic geological environments, and 
— carbonate environments. 
Evaluation techniques would then follow the neces­
sarily theoretical approach to the primary and 
secondary porosity question, which considerably 
affects the potential of the oil field. Account should 
be taken here not only of the technical limits but 
also of the economic limits, for example in the form 
of a cost/benefit analysis. 
— Evaluation techniques 
3.7. An exact definition of 'gas field' is also of 
practical importance. The Committee considers that 
this subject should receive special attention in re­
search planning and be analyzed in detail. A central 
position could be given to knowledge of how deep 
basins can be discovered, i. e, how knowledge about 
the potential, structure and function of deep gas 
environments can be further developed, with multi-
disciplinary studies (petroleum geology, geochemis­
try and geophysics) being accorded priority. 
For greater coordination of natural gas research it is 
also expedient to investigate the geophysical rela­
tionships in conjunction with the other disciplines 
mentioned in the optimization programme. Such re­
search projects could link up with models and ana­
lytical studies of deep gas fields. 
No C 25/26 Official Journal of the European Communities 28. 1. 85 
This understanding is vital, since attempts made so 
far within the framework of Regulation (EEC) No 
3056/73 have produced poor results, while the use 
of natural gas within the Community is, unlike the 
use of oil, expected to increase. 
— Fluid mechanics 
3.8. In general the Committee considers that it 
would be worthwhile also to systematically record 
and evaluate all the knowledge available in industry, 
scientific societies, research centres and elsewhere. It 
would refer to the example provided by the 
Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Mineralolwissenschaft 
und Kohlechemie (German Society for Petroleum 
Science and Coal Chemistry), which has gathered 
information relating to evaluation techniques and 
fluid mechanics in oil wells which is of relevance to 
the future. 
Utilization of natural gas 
3.9. The Committee realizes that the proposed op­
timization programme embraces a very wide spec­
trum of activities which cannot yet be analyzed 
down to the last detail. 
It is therefore all the more important to carry out 
extensive surveys at the start of precompetitive re­
search. This applies above all to existing knowledge 
in the area of deep natural gas wells. 
In connection with the utilization of natural gas, the 
Committee would point out that the standards for 
individual product qualities can be further devel­
oped. It would be useful to develop models, which 
can be derived from investigations of the thermody­
namic properties of gas mixtures. The proposed R & 
D projects should therefore take special account of 
product quality problems. 
Utilization of heavy oil fractions 
3.10. The Committee endorses the individual pro­
posals and implications regarding research on the 
utilization of heavy oil fractions. A very fine degree 
of detail in the implications does not, however, seem 
to be absolutely necessary; this would entail the risk 
of rigid expectations, preconceived ideas about the 
programme and a lack of flexibility in the selection 
of research subjects. 
3.11. The Committee, too, is of the view that strict 
specifications must be observed in the blending of 
gasoline and diesel fuel from the conversion process 
into gasoline and diesel pools. The octane number 
for gasoline and the cetane number for gas oil are 
not the only criteria to be taken into account. The Committee is further of the view that the cetane 
number should be taken into consideration in estab­
lishing new indicators for the qualitiy of automotive 
diesel oil. It should be borne in mind here that the 
existing methods for determining the cetane number 
are no longer satisfactory and need to be im­
proved. 
Matching of engines and fuels 
3.12. The Committee proposes that the passage on 
the problems of matching engines and fuels should 
begin as follows: 'If it is not possible to conform to 
present quality requirements for fuels, engine design 
must be adapted to match the fuel qualities that will 
be attainable in the future ...' 
The Committee takes the view that an energy policy 
that disregards the engine would be impossible to 
implement and would moreover trigger revolution­
ary processes on an unforeseeable scale in the social 
and economic structures. Against this background it 
is clear that every effort should be made to maintain 
fuel quality at a level at which matching with 
further-developed engines will be possible. 
Special attention should be paid to the various kinds 
of chemical additive. This section of the Commis­
sion document seems somewhat meagre in compari­
son with the section on the utilization of natural gas 
and on the implications for the refining of gasoline 
and diesel oil. Evidently the theoretical base for the 
development of new additives is quite small. 
This is probably why the Commission proposes the 
development of such a theoretical base for the com­
bustion of gasoline and diesel oil containing various 
types of chemical additive. The Committee supports 
this proposal, but thinks that it should be explained 
in detail what is to be understood by 'theoretical 
base'. 
3.13. The Committee sees a very close link between 
the maintenance of fuel quality and the refining of 
gasoline and diesel oil. The manufacture of fuels 
and their utilization should be coordinated in the 
optimization programme from the scientific/techni­
cal and energy policy angles. The problems tackled 
in refining must tie in with the problems to be solved 
in the matching of engines and fuels. The Commit­
tee accordingly proposes that R & D in these two 
areas should be comparable and be geared to market 
requirements, with the emphasis on the complex of 
social and economic activity that depends on motor­
ization. 
Implementation of the sub-programme 
3.14. The Committee's observations on a number 
of specific points apply also in general to the imple­
mentation of the optimization programme. The var-
28. 1. 85 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 25/27 
ious R&D activities should be comparable with 
each other in form it they are to make their contribu­
tion to the implementation of the Community 
energy strategy. This applies particularly to the allo­
cation of the funds, which according to the Commis­
sion are to be apportioned initially as follows: 
— Exploration methods 24,0 % 
— Utilization of natural gas; 10,0% 
— Optimization of production, conversion 24,0 % 
— Utilization of heavy oil fractions 24,0 % 
— matching of engines and fuels 13,5 % 
— Staff costs 4,5 % 
100 % Given the long-term tasks of basic research, the 
Committee thinks that this apportionment of funds 
may not be consonant with the Community energy 
strategy on several points. It would therefore refer 
once again to its basic observation that the areas of 
activity and main points of effort of the complemen­
tary optimization programme should be continued 
and updated in the medium-term financial plan in 
such a way as to ensure that there is a great measure 
of consistency with all Community action and that 
sufficient account is taken of environmental issues. 
Done at Brussels, 21 November 1984. 
lite Chairman 
of the Economic and Social Committee 
Gerd MUHR 
APPENDIX 
to the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee 
Rejected proposal for an amendment 
The following proposal for an amendment submitted in accordance with the Rules of Procedure 
was rejected in the course of the discussions: 
Page 2, third paragraph: 
To be replaced by the following: 
'In assessing the Commission's Proposal the Committee wondered what priority is to be 
attached to this programme in view of the many other projects in the Community's framework 
programme for R&D. This is partly due to the fact that the funds available for R & D are 
limited. 
In view of the fact that, 
— it is proposed that the programme take the form of shared-cost contracts, 
— the Commission's proposal makes it clear at a number of points that close consultations will 
be held with experts from industry to discuss the programme's detailed implementation, 
— CREST has been asked for its opinion (which unfortunately is not attached to the Commis­
sion proposal), 
the Committee is of the view that sufficient safeguards have been built in to prevent research 
being undertaken which is not urgently needed or has already been/is being adequately carried 
out by the industry itself or other bodies. The Committee strongly urges continuous close consul­
tation with experts from the industry'. 
Voting: 
For : 14, Against : 30, Abstentions : 28.