SWEDEN: RESPONSE TO REQUEST FOR INPUT FOR NEW REQUIRED

UNCLAS STOCKHOLM 000122 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR EEB/ESC/IEC (GGRIFFEN) STATE PLEASE PASS USTR E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ECON ENRG APER ABUD SW SUBJECT: SWEDEN: RESPONSE TO REQUEST FOR INPUT FOR NEW REQUIRED REPORTS TO CONGRESS ON ENERGY REF: STATE 10743 ¶1. (SBU) In response to reftel request, Mission is pleased to provide the following information: A: At Embassy Stockholm, the Economic Section has the lead on energy issues. The section is staffed by four full-time employees. B: The section has two FSOs, one FSN, and one EFM. The Section Head is Economic Counselor Olivia Hilton. An FS-1, she spends 60% of her time on energy-related issues. The Deputy Section Head, Economic Officer Richard La Roche, is an FS-4 who spends 5% of his time on these issues. The Economic Specialist, Annika Henningsson, an FSN-10, spends 40% of her time on these issues, while the Economic Office Management Specialist/Administrative Assistant, EFM Bonnie Murray, spends 30% of her time supporting the energy portfolio. C: The Economic Counselor has the lead in reporting on energy issues to the Ambassador and the Deputy Chief of Mission. She manages the section, the staff, and serves as acting DCM when needed. She chairs the Ambassador's One Big Thing alternative energy Steering Committee (to promote collaboration between Sweden and the U.S. to achieve a break-through in alternative energy). She directs all mission efforts to encourage cooperation between the U.S. and Sweden on alternative energy. - The Economic Officer delivers demarches and draft cables regarding energy-related issues, e-Pine (Enhanced Partnership for Northern Europe),and trade issues with an environmental impact. - The FSN Economic Specialist supports and complements the work of the Economic Officers. She serves as the executive secretary of the One Big Thing Steering Committee and supports the work of the One Big Thing policy sub-committee, one of five mission One Big Thing sub-committees. The incumbent acts as the main liaison for the work of all sections involved in One Big Thing efforts. She coordinates the embassy's work under the Bilateral Science and Technology Agreement with Sweden. Further, she performs research and analysis and drafts reports on energy-related topics. - The EFM is the office management specialist and administrative assistant for the Economic Section. She assists in energy-related matters by creating and formatting documents, answering phone calls, delivering documents for authorization and clearance, keeping records and files, conducting research, and setting up appointments. - The Ambassador's initiative, The One Big Thing, aims to pave the way for a technological breakthrough in alternative fuels through public and private sector collaboration. It raises awareness in Sweden of the USG's commitment to reduce fossil fuel dependency and works to gain stronger support and establish a dialogue on both governmental and corporate levels for alternative energy cooperation. - The Economic Counselor and the Economic Specialist have received training at the Foreign Service Institute and elsewhere on economic, energy, and trade-related issues, as well as Environment, Science, Technology and Health areas that intersect with the energy portfolio. Given the small size of the Economic Section, all work is shared to a certain extent. D: In FY 2007, the Economic Section spent USD 115,000 (based on salaries) on support of energy-related activities and post spent USD 100,000 on energy-related programs. ¶2. (U) The Embassy POC for this activity is Economic Counselor Olivia Hilton, (46-8) 783-5323, email: hiltonop@state.gov WOOD