At this year’s e8 Annual Summit, held on June 4, 2009, in Rome, Italy, the e8 chairmen, joined by the chairmen of CFE (Mexico) and Eletrobras (Brazil), met to discuss the role of the electricity sector as a key actor in a global solution to climate change in the context of a global financial crisis and the negotiations towards a new international agreement on climate change. The e8 chairmen put forward the following statement:
At the Summit, the chairmen held free discussions on the electricity sector’s perspectives regarding GHG emissions abatement and global climate change policies, respectively moderated by Messrs Nobuo Tanaka (Executive Director of the International Energy Agency) and Yvo de Boer (Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change).
The Rome Summit marked the official launch of a collaborative dialogue between the e8 members and their counterparts from the major emerging countries. Recognizing the importance of collaboration among the key players of the international electricity sector in both industrialised and emerging countries, the e8 chairmen and chairmen of CFE, Eletrobras, Eskom (South Africa) and SGCCC (China) put forward a Statement of Mutual Interest and Collaboration.
In view of the 2009 G8 Summit and the United Nations Copenhagen Climate Change Conference, the chairmen called on heads of governments and international institutions for decisions which are global in nature, economically viable and realistic in their implementation strategies. They offered the following recommendations for a successful Copenhagen Agreement:
International Electricity Leaders’ Recommendations for a Successful New Climate Change Agreement
Major global environmental and social issues that affect the electric utility industry are considered to be the top priorities of the e8.
The issues of sustainable development, climate change, social trust, and internationalisation are the focus of the e8's actions.