Major EU Energy Law & Policy Developments in 2013

Raluca Dirjan

RES & Energy Efficiency

Moving forward on Climate and Energy 2030

RES Progress Report

Energy Efficiency Directive

Internal Energy Market

REMIT

Making the internal energy market work

Unbundling guidelines for financial investors

Oil & Gas

Shale Gas

Offshore oil and gas platforms standards

Moving forward on Climate and Energy 2030

Green Paper and Public Consultation no further targets proposed invitation to stakeholders to express their views on the way forward lack of competitiveness of the EU economies – burden of high energy prices new measures for reaching the 2020 targets in the context of scaling back of the support schemes limit the use of the support schemes only to those technologies and if that is still need it avoid overcompensation proposal for the 2030 framework on the table by the end of 2013

http://ec.europa.eu/energy/green_paper_2030_en.htm

RES Progress Report

reform of the support schemes - cost-effective and market-orientated manner

national reforms - negative impact on the investment climate

more convergence and ‘Europeanisation’ of RES support schemes is needed

regional and possibly sectoral joint support schemes between Member States based on the co-operation mechanisms

COM to provide Guidelines by the end of the year

http://ec.europa.eu/energy/green_paper_2030_en.htm

Energy Efficiency Directive (2012/27) indicative national energy efficiency targets for 2020 energy utilities as of 1 January 2014: cumulative end-use energy savings target, which target is set at 1,5 % of the annual energy sales to final customers consumers: required to manage their energy consumption more efficiently as a result of better information provided on their meters and bills high quality energy audits will be made available to all final customers the industry: must carry out cost-benefit analyses to assess the potential of using efficient heating and cooling systems, in particular those using high-efficiency cogeneration central governments: can only acquire energy-efficient buildings, services and products as from 1 January 2014, they must renovate 3% of their buildings on a yearly basis in order to drastically reduce their energy consumption implementation deadline 5 June 2014

http://ec.europa.eu/energy/efficiency/eed/eed_en.htm

REMIT Wholesale energy markets provide key price signals which affect the choices of producers and consumers, and investment decision in production facilities and transport infrastructure

energy trading will be screened at EU level to uncover abuses defining market abuse as market manipulation, attempted market manipulation and insider trading, in wholesale energy markets explicit prohibition of market manipulation, attempted market manipulation and insider trading in wholesale energy markets new framework for the monitoring of wholesale energy markets to detect and deter market manipulation and insider trading enforcement of the above prohibitions and the sanctioning of breaches of market abuse rules at national level

http://www.acer.europa.eu/remit/Pages/default.aspx

Making the internal energy market work Report and Work Plan COM: pursue the enforcement procedures Competition authorities: keeping the playing field ACER: continue with the regional initiatives MSs: develop infrastructure Consumers: end to regulated tariffs + assistance to vulnerable consumers Minimise market intervention so that the liberalised markets can work based on economic principles ENTSO-E and G: finalise the Codes so that the ETM and GTM can be fully implemented integrate RES capacities Security of supply: reward capacity availability More energy infrastructure for the cross border integration Smart grids and meters to ensure demand side management

http://ec.europa.eu/energy/gas_electricity/internal_market_en.htm

Unbundling Guidelines for financial investors aim: to avoid conflict of interest for entities holding participations in

transmission, generation and supply units not legally binding but v useful for considering the acceptable forms of financial

investments 2 steps test: 1. control or exercise rights and if yes, then 2. if in the circumstances

of the individual case, it can be clearly demonstrated that there is no incentive for a shareholder in a TSO to influence the TSO’s decision-making in order to favor his generation, production and/or supply interest to the detriment of other network users

geographic location (National Grid UK) crossing over gas – electricity assets less likely to generate conflict (Red

Electrica de Espana and Enagas) Size and market share of the conflicting activities (50 Hertz and Dalkia Polska) Generators rewarded with FiT less likely to create conflict if transmission assets

are also owned http://ec.europa.eu/energy/gas_electricity/interpretative_notes/doc/implementation_notes/swd_2013_0177_en.pdf

Shale Gas

Shale Gas Hydrocarbon Licensing Directive 1994 (HLD 1994) – no barriers to cover shale gas as well prior to 2011 no one spoke about shale gas in Europe European Council meeting February 2011 and the European Parliament’s November 2012 call for the introduction of an EU-wide risk management framework for unconventional fossil fuels exploration and extraction Commission has released several studies on shale gas http://ec.europa.eu/environment/integration/energy/uff_studies_en.htm on-line public consultation came to an end in March 2013 and the results are now available as a prep for an impact assessment on the ‘Environmental, Climate and Energy Assessment Framework to Enable Safe and Secure Unconventional Hydrocarbon Extraction’ public opinion leaning towards a NO majority view: regulatory framework needs to be developed to cover all risks

Directive on Offshore oil and gas platforms

standards in force as of 18 July 2013 addressing Deepwater Horizon (Gulf of Mexico) and Alpha Piper (UKCS) accidents aim: consistent minimum standard of regulation across EU mostly based on the UKCS standards not applicable to landlocked MSs financial liability for environmental damages moved from the operator to the licence holder NRAs to assess the financial capability of the licence holders to withstand adequate provisions for potential liabilities operators to submit a major hazard report prior to commencement of the offshore operations oil spill response effectiveness independent authorities for safety and environment oversight, separated from the licensing authority (ie: NRAs) http://ec.europa.eu/energy/oil/offshore/standards_en.htm

Thank you!

Raluca Dirjan

Attorney at Law

r.dirjan@schoenherr.eu

+32 2 743 40 41