Electricity
(BRUSSELS) – An EU Parliament committee approved Wednesday an energy package offering more competition in the electricity market, better information for consumers and plans to tackle shortages during crises.
The Parliament’s Industry and Energy Committee, which is pushing for rules leading to more efficient competition and prices on the market, amended proposals to empower and protect consumers and put in place measures to tackle energy shortages. MEPs also want EU member states to consider additional payments to capacity providers only as a last resort and under certain conditions.
The plans to give more power to consumers include:
- a comparison tool should be available in each EU country, displaying and ranking rates and tariffs from all suppliers, with an impartial algorithm and independent from suppliers;
- consumers should be able to withdraw from a contract without facing penalties, and a summary of key conditions should be included on the first page;
- by January 2022, switching supplier should take no longer than 24 hours;
- bills should display the actual amount of energy consumed, the payment due date, contact details of the company, as well as rules on switching provider and dispute settlement.
Further information – European Parliament – Consumers’ rights for electricity
MEPs do not want consumers who generate, consume and sell energy to be discriminated against (also called “prosumers” – active energy consumers, because they both consume and produce electricity).
MEPs agreed in particular on clear conditions for creating and managing local energy communities, i.e. groups of people producing and consuming energy locally. These local networks should contribute to the costs of the electricity system they connect to and not distort competition, MEPs added.
In the event of an electricity supply shortage, MEPs agreed on national and regional measures to be implemented before and during crises to ensure that supply is not stopped due to e.g. adverse weather conditions or malicious attacks, such as malware or hacking.
Regional coordination centres should help to draft crisis planning scenarios, while the European Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators (ACER) should be able to ensure that they comply with their obligations.
The Industry and Energy Committee amended four legislative proposals on the EU electricity market. These are part of the so-called Clean Energy package and mark a step closer to an Energy Union. Once the plenary confirms the mandate for negotiations, talks with EU Ministers will be able to start.
