WRITTEN QUESTION E-0218/00 by Bart Staes (Verts/ALE) to the Commission. Financial aid to the European oil industry.
Date: 2000-02-04
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: EU Member State, aid to industry, competitiveness, distribution of aid, energy policy, environmental protection, hydrocarbon, oil industry, oil technology, research project

C 330 E/104

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

21.11.2000

(2000/C 330 E/115)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0217/00

by Mario Mantovani (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(4 February 2000)

Subject: Radioactive waste at the JRC in Ispra

Although it is now 16 years since the closure of the last working reactor at the JRC in Ispra, Italian
newspapers have recently raised the issue of radioactive waste at the JRC.

In fact, there are 2500 cubic metres of radioactive waste stored in bituminous or cemented casks which
have been kept at the Ispra Centre rather than being disposed of, probably because of the high costs of the
disposal of and management of waste products from nuclear installations.

Needless to say, the presence of such dangerous materials is causing alarm and concern in the region.

Does the Commission have any information available on this question?

Answer given by Mr Busquin on behalf of the Commission

(23 March 2000)

The Commission would draw the Honourable Member(cid:146)s attention to its communication to Parliament and
the Council entitled (cid:145)Historical liabilities resulting from nuclear activities carried out at the JRC under the
Euratom Treaty (cid:129) decommissioning of obsolete nuclear installations and waste management(cid:146) (1).

The waste referred to by the Honourable Member is stored on appropriate premises, where it is monitored
by instruments.

Nevertheless the Commission has undertaken to review its encapsulation in agreement with the Italian
authorities.

As stated in the communication, that waste will be stored in a perfectly safe manner at the Ispra site while
awaiting a final storage centre in Italy.

(1) COM(1999) 114 final.

(2000/C 330 E/116)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0218/00

by Bart Staes (Verts/ALE) to the Commission

(4 February 2000)

Subject: Financial aid to the European oil industry

In answer to question E-2126/99 (1) Mrs de Palacio has stated that
approximately EUR 750 million to the hydrocarbons sector since 1975.

the Commission has provided

Please provide an annual breakdown of this figure, specifying the amounts allocated to (a) oil, (b) gas and
(c) coal, together with a breakdown per Member State.

(1) OJ C 170 E, 20.6.2000, p. 145.

Answer given by Mrs de Palacio on behalf of the Commission

(16 March 2000)

After the first oil crisis in 1973 the Community started programmes to give financial support
to
technology for production exploration and transport of hydrocarbons. The main concern at that time
was security of supply. Financial support was therefore focused on technology to develop indigenous
resources in the North Sea.

21.11.2000

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 330 E/105

During the following years however the programme enlarged its objectives to competitiveness and
protection of the environment. Priority was given to projects reducing the environmental
impact of
hydrocarbon exploitation and promoting the competitiveness of European technology.

In the period from 1975 to 1998, nearly € 750 million of support was granted to projects for the research
development and demonstration of innovative hydrocarbons technology. The € 750 million of financial
support already mentioned in the Commission(cid:146)s previous reply to Written Question E-2126/99 by
Mrs Maes refers only to oil and gas technology (it did not include the support for coal technology
projects). The following table indicates the split by year and by country for the period 1990-1998, which
related to the Thermie programme. In addition the total support for the period 1975-1989 has been
included in the first column.

Support to hydrocarbons technology 1975-1998

(in million euros)

1975-1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

Total

Denmark

Germany

Greece

Spain

France

Ireland

Italy

The Netherlands

Portugal

Sweden

0,53

3,03

1,02

12,17

66,30

3,19

0,59

195,64

5,36

8,02

6,65

80,54

28,07

1,03

1,03

0,41

4,50

0,60

0,14

1,55

5,48

0,21

4,79

6,56

2,58

2,67

0,45

1,10

0,21

0,22

10,61

14,78

5,43

0,69

8,32

0,43

3,33

0,30

4,79

0,49

1,85

0,11

0,74

United Kingdom

132,28

2,03

6,60

5,55

6,90

11,72

10,44

Norway Kingdom

2,87

1,09

1,39

4,40

1,13

0,40

1,12

14,70

87,40

7,34

2,44

11,42

7,39

7,69

270,49

5,68

1,84

4,68

3,37

0,63

3,58

1,18

5,45

2,61

7,14

119,36

36,13

1,17

2,58

5,27

2,50

189,05

9,92

Total

526,46

9,85

23,42

26,72

26,30

37,23

24,92

18,33

25,44

29,05

747,72

The relatively high amount of support allocated to the United Kingdom, Italy and France, derives from the
support to the United Kingdom and Italy related to projects for the production of hydrocarbon in the
Mediterranean and in the North Sea and the French strong network of service and supply industry.

As far as the split between oil and gas is concerned, this is somewhat more complex. Innovative drilling
equipment or a new seismic acquisition system can be used both for oil and gas applications. In such cases
it is not possible to classify a technology as a gas or as an oil technology. However, there are some
techniques whose application is limited to gas, mainly in relation to gas conversion and transport issues.
The number of projects dealing exclusively with gas technology is fairly limited and the related financial
support can be estimated at less than 10 % of the total budget.

(2000/C 330 E/117)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0220/00

by Willy De Clercq (ELDR) to the Commission

(4 February 2000)

Subject: Post-clearance recovery of customs duty on textile products imported from Bangladesh

Following a visit to Bangladesh by a Community delegation towards the end of 1996 with the aim of
issued between the end of 1993 and mid-1996, the
checking 15 000 certificates of origin, form A,