Minister Bausch Encourages Energy, Electricity Self-Sufficiency During Hensinki Visit

From Monday 24 to Wednesday 26 October 2022, Luxembourg's Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defence and Minister of Mobility and Public Works, François Bausch, paid a working visit to Helsinki, Finland.

During this visit, Minister Bausch was first welcomed by his Finnish counterpart, Timo Harraka, the Minister of Transport and Communications for a bilateral meeting. At the centre of the discussions were the energy crisis and biofuel, biogas and hydrogen as transition technologies. In the context of the war in Ukraine, Minister Bausch said: “We cannot wait any longer, we must become a producer and distributor of energy and electricity. We must become independent of gas from Russia and other major powers and seize the opportunity to develop our own renewable energy capacities”.

The meeting also provided an opportunity to discuss the rapid development of electromobility and its charging infrastructure for electric vehicles on the national territory of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. Another topic discussed at the meeting was Finland's participation in the Rail Baltica project, a railway project within the framework of the TEN-T with the aim of connecting Finland to the Baltic countries and ultimately to the European rail network.

In favour of sustainable mobility, the two ministers underscored their commitment to the process of ecological transition and for the significant investments in the operation of the tram network.

Minister Bausch also took the opportunity of this trip to attend the "Light Rail Day" conference and gave a presentation on the role of the tram in a multimodal transport network as part of of the 2035 National Mobility Plan. During the presentation, Minister Bausch reminded his interlocutors: “There is a change in mentalities. The rule applies to any means of transport in which an adequate investment is made. The success of the tramway is essentially due to its quality. Quality can only be achieved with a voluntary investment policy”.

In addition, Minister Bausch participated, together with his Finnish counterpart, Timo Harraka in the panel under the theme “The importance of trams for future public transport and urban development”. The panel addressed questions on free public transport as well as on investment in the construction of the tram and its impact on the attractiveness and urbanization of cities. On the occasion of this round table, Minister Bausch said: “We must rethink the question of the mobility strategy and understand the different needs of the regions. I am not making a policy against the car; the car will continue to play its role in mobility. On the other hand, in a dense urban fabric for example, the car is particularly inefficient and consumes a lot of public space”.

In his capacity as the Minister of Defence, Minister Bausch had a meeting with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Finland, Pekka Haavisto. The two ministers discussed recent developments in the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine as well as Finland's NATO membership. Luxembourg supports this process, which will strengthen the security of the Euro-Atlantic area, the Chamber of Deputies (Luxembourg's parliament) having already adopted the relevant law last July.

Minister Bausch also visited the European Centre of Excellence for Countering Hybrid Threats (Hybrid CoE). In close cooperation with NATO and the European Union, the Hybrid CoE aims to strengthen the capabilities of its 32 participating States to counter hybrid threats by providing them with their unique expertise.

On Wednesday, together with the project managers of the City of Helsinki, Minister Bausch visited the construction site of the Jokeri Light Rail, which began in 2019. This is a rapid tram system located north of the capital. The new construction of this 25 kilometre rapid tram line will include 34 stations. Commissioning is scheduled for next summer.