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Interview

Prince Albert II: “we absolutely have to move towards a decarbonised society”

prince albert ii arab news
The Sovereign spoke about the Ever Monaco trade fair and the Principality's different environmental issues - © Arab News

The Sovereign spoke in a video interview.

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On 11 and 12 May, the Principality hosted the Ever Monaco exhibition : a trade fair that presents the vehicles of tomorrow and promotes sustainable mobility and renewable energies.

On this occasion, the journalist Mélinda Mrini, from Arab News, interviewed the Sovereign on video. The Prince was able to share his vision of the exhibition and list the different measures taken by the Principality to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions.

“Since its creation, Ever has promoted clean mobility and the Principality’s commitment to creating a platform that showcases all aspects of clean mobility, whether it be, of course, electric car engines, clean energy, renewable energy or clean fuels. (…) We must absolutely move towards a decarbonised society, towards lessening the impact of our human activities and towards everything that can incite the consumers of today and tomorrow to adopt these new standards and these new orientations towards clean mobility,” the Prince began.

Massive efforts in the transport sector

The exhibition is therefore in step with the Sovereign’s environmental efforts and those of his Foundation. When asked how Monaco is working to achieve its ambitious energy objectives while avoiding negative growth, Prince Albert II mentioned the efforts made in Monaco to offer the widest possible range of clean transport.

“We focused first on public transport. We are currently expanding our fleet of electric buses and we hope, by 2025, to have 100% electric buses,” said the Prince, also mentioning the subsidy in place for the purchase of clean vehicles. “By the end of the year, we hope that 20% of our vehicles will be electric or rechargeable hybrid. For a small country like ours, these are quite remarkable objectives,” the Sovereign stressed.

As for tourists and workers, the Prince recalled the significant rollout of electric charging points in the country, as well as the implementation of standards for cruise ships to enable them to connect to the electricity network at the Principality’s ports. Efforts in the transport sector, in addition to those in construction, energy and waste treatment, are in a bid to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 50% by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.

These many initiatives have been taken in Monaco, and elsewhere, thanks to the actions carried out by the Prince’s Foundation. “We have several projects to do with solar or wind energy all around the Mediterranean basin and beyond. We must demonstrate the importance of this energy mix, which is crucial, even for developing countries,” concluded the Sovereign.