BRUSSELS - European Union leaders gave a push to renewable energy on Friday, eyeing higher targets for sources like wind and solar power as the 25-nation bloc tries to reduce its dependence on foreign energy suppliers.

CHALON-SUR-SAONE, France — At a factory nestled among Burgundy vineyards, workers shape, bore, polish and test pieces needed to put together a nuclear reactor. At each work station, technical charts are pasted next to a map of the country buying the product.

Swedish Radio News reports that the opposition Center Party has joined with the government in a new agreement on energy that includes a major effort to develop wind power.

Minister of Petroleum and Energy Odd Roger Enoksen said there was no reason to hesitate to invest in wind power, even if government support schemes are not yet in place.

Amsterdam (ANTARA News) - The Dutch are debating their energy options for the future. Partial privatization of gas and electricity, building a new nuclear plant and meeting commitments under the Kyoto protocol are at the centre of the increasingly heated discussion.

The Government's new fast track planning bill for strategic infrastructure has been published.

STOCKHOLM, Sweden - U.S. President George W. Bush may have surprised international observers by pledging in his State of the Union address to break his country's addiction to foreign oil - but Sweden was already one step ahead of him.

LISBON (AFP) - The Portuguese government has postponed the deadline for international bids for new wind farm permits to March 1 from January 30.

The Chinese electric utility Huaneng and the Spanish National Power Corporation Endesa have unveiled a pioneering initiative for purchasing emissions credits generated under the Kyoto Protocol's Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), according to the 21st Century Business Herald.

The union has also committed to increase the share of renewable sources in its energy mix, though some say that can be developed further. With North Sea oil sources depleting and gas getting expensive, "renewables" like biofuels or hydro power are seen as crucial to establishing more home-grown energy supplies.

BRUSSELS, Belgium — The EU has a harsh New Year's resolution to keep after a gas dispute between Russia and Ukraine led to official exhortations for Europe to look for a wider range of suppliers and energy sources.

wind energy faces enormous political challenges here, including the hostility of the conservative press and rural populations against the installation of wind turbines.

Only a massive immediate investment in wind energy and the installation of thousands of wind turbines over the next decade will permit France to reach its target of further reducing carbon dioxide emissions, according to a new report by a state agency.

THE UK took its fight for a liberal energy market to Europe yesterday as Malcolm Wicks, the Energy Minister, chided his European colleagues for allowing vested interests to keep markets closed.

December 1, 2005 Montreal, Canada [RenewableEnergyAccess.com] Some of the largest companies in the world this week announced they have increased their purchases of renewable energy. The World Resources Institute (WRI) and members of its Green Power Market Development Group announced 185 new MW of renewable energy purchases and projects, bringing the total number of MW under contract to 360 -- the average size of a coal-fired power plant. "These firms are joined today in Europe by an expanded set of companies that will explore new renewable projects that complement progressive EU policies on renewables. Climate change is a global issue, and these leaders demonstrate that their companies can look across borders to find alternative green energy solutions to fit their local circumstances." -- Jonathan Lash, World Resources Institute president

GREEN lobby groups that oppose nuclear energy were accused of "fundamentalism" yesterday as the Government announced a review of whether to build a new generation of nuclear power stations.

The Prime Minister has called for a “mature debate” on energy policy. If the antics of two Greenpeace activists yesterday are any indication, he may struggle to achieve that. This is, as he admitted, a “difficult and challenging” matter. Yet it is precisely because it is difficult and will be challenged in emotive terms, that the question must not be avoided. The “review” of Britain’s energy requirements, which should be completed by the summer, is likely to recommend the development of a new generation of nuclear power stations. The Prime Minister needs to start preparing now for the discussion and the distortions that will surely follow.

Prime Minister Tony Blair yesterday signalled a shift away from the Government's stance on wind power when he ordered a wide-ranging review of Britain's energy needs.

In a Question to the Environment Minister in the National Assembly, Elin Jones, Assembly Member for Ceredigion has challenged Carwyn Jones to give priority to the use of Forestry Commission land for windfarm developments.

A DRAMATIC stop has been put on an application to erect 10 of the largest wind turbines in Wales on a site near Pencader.