ENERGY SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT -
A CHALLENGE FOR THE NEW CENTURY

IX International Energy Forum Energex'2002 is over.
Dear delegates!
Thank you for your participation, for your involvement and passion.

The conference organisation and its success are the result of tireless efforts of many individuals, but the special appreciation goes to authors.
Before the Conference the Organising Committee received over 300 abstracts of technical papers representing 52 countries. The Programme Committee chose 171 papers for presentation at the Conference. (These abstracts are published in the book of Abstracts). Finally 135 papers were presented during the Conference. These papers will be published in the Proceedings - the special issue of "Applied Energy" by Elsevier Science.
Particular recognition is accorded to the plenary speakers. Their lectures (published in the book of Plenary Papers) have touched real problems of energy development, shown the future trends and the fields of international co-operation.

Inspired discussions during the Conference allowed formulating the following general conclusions:

1. Energy is now and will be in future an important element of the civilisation development, so the energy safety of nations is a very important issue.
2. Fossil fuel exploitation and their conversion into the final energy pollute the environment and enhance the greenhouse effect.
3. To diminish those undesirable consequences it is necessary to:
   • save energy at each of the stages from exploitation, through conversion to final use,
   • develop and implement clean coal technologies,
   • increase the substitution of coal by gas,
   • increase of renewable energy usage,
   • expand the international co-operation leading to more ecological energy technologies and especially the technological help to developing counties,
   • create the conditions for development of distributed energy sources co-generating traditional and renewable energy,
   • develop and implement efficient methods of utilisation of wastes produced by energy sectors.
4. Creation of national and regional energy markets and their liberalisation hinder the energy prices increase as well as contribute to the decrease of energy production costs.

We hope that the Conference in Cracow allowed the delegates to widen their knowledge about energy development general problems as well as local energy issues.
We also hope that our guests from abroad have nice memories from Cracow and Salt Mine in Wieliczka.

Prof. Roman Ney Director Mineral and Energy Economy Research Institute

Dr. Lidia Gawlik Chair Organising Committee Energex'2002 Conference