REQUEST FOR WIREC FOLLOW-UP; MR. SMALL (ASSISTANT

UNCLAS STATE 154860 SIPDIS SIPDIS FOR ECON AND ESTOFF FOR COPHENHAGEN PLEASE PASS TO REO E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ENRG KPAO SOCI TRGY CA SUBJECT: REQUEST FOR WIREC FOLLOW-UP; MR. SMALL (ASSISTANT DEPUTY MINISTER, GLOBAL ISSUES) ¶1. THIS IS AN ACTION CABLE, PLEASE SEE PARA 3. ¶2. SUMMARY: On July 16, 2007, OES P/DAS Reno Harnish met with Canada's Political Minister Kevin O,Shea and Energy Counselor Paul Connors to discuss the Washington International Renewable Energy Conference (WIREC 2008). As part of that discussion, Harnish highlighted the need for strong developing country participation and requested Canada's consideration of providing financial support (REFTEL). This letter follows up on those conversations and requests the Government of Canada's financial support for developing country participants to attend WIREC 2008. END SUMMARY. ¶3. ACTION: Post is requested to deliver the letter dated November 5, 2007 to Mr. Small. (NB: The hard copy of the letter has been delivered to the DCM at their embassy in Washington) ¶4. BEGIN TEXT Dear Mr. Small: On October 16, I had the pleasure of meeting with Political Minister Kevin O,Shea and Energy Counselor Paul Connors to discuss the Washington International Renewable Energy Conference (WIREC 2008),which will be held March 4-6, 2008 at the Washington Convention Center. I enjoyed meeting them, and look forward to our continued interaction concerning WIREC 2008. As the third global ministerial-level event on renewable energy, WIREC 2008 is expected to draw 2,000 senior level participants from around the world, including leaders from national and sub-national governments, the private sector, and civil society. Based on discussions between the U.S. Embassy in Ottawa and your government, I understand that Canada's delegation may include representatives from your Ministries of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, Natural Resources, Environment, Agriculture and Agri-Food, as well as representatives from provincial and local governments and civil society. Canada,s strong presence at WIREC is very welcome. WIREC 2008 will also feature a co-located trade show/business conference, separately managed by the American Council on Renewable Energy and other U.S. and international renewable energy organizations Last month, the U.S. government hosted WIREC,s kick-off event, which drew over two hundred representatives from the private sector, civil society and foreign governments. Under Secretary of State for Democracy and Global Affairs SIPDIS Dobriansky and Under Secretary of Agriculture for Rural Development Tom Dorr provided opening remarks at the October 2nd event. Representatives from the White House, the Departments of Energy and Commerce and the Environmental Protection Agency also participated. Please see www.wirec2008.gov for additional information. Robust developing country participation by government officials (federal and subnational),the private sector and civil society will enhance the success of WIREC 2008. We would like to provide financial support for both official delegations as well as key developing country renewable energy experts. We estimate that $5,500 will be needed to cover the travel and per diem costs for each developing country participant. During my meeting, Minister O,Shea indicated the possibility of Canada providing funds to support the attendance of developing country delegates. The purpose of my letter is to formally follow up on that discussion. I would be grateful for any assistance the Government of Canada could provide to help us achieve our goal. I have also sent similar requests to colleagues in the EU, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the United Kingdom. If you wish to provide support for developing country travel, you may provide funds to a special account established by the US Energy Association (USEA) for this purpose. USEA, a non-governmental entity, has served a similar coordinating role for previous Ministerial-level conferences and is also serving as our contractor for other aspects of WIREC 2008. USEA will coordinate with donor governments to handle the necessary travel arrangements and provide donor governments with an accounting for the sponsored delegations. Ms. Marjorie Jean-Pierre, Deputy Program Manager, is the USEA point of contact. She can be reached by phone at 1-202-312-1230 or via e-mail at mjean-pierre@usea.org. Please let me know if you have any questions regarding this request, as I am eager to hear your suggestions and recommendations. I would welcome the chance to discuss WIREC 2008 with you with you in greater detail either when you are next in Washington or via a video or telephone conference call. I would also appreciate your providing me with a working contact in your ministry for my staff to discuss WIREC,s progress in detail. Sincerely, Reno Harnish Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary." End text. ¶5. No hard copy to follow. RICE