EU Wholesale Energy Market

Background

The European Commission's proposal addresses consumer, industry and investors' concerns over exposure to volatile short-term prices, driven by high prices of fossil fuels. The objective is to optimize the electricity market design by complementing the short-term markets with a greater role for longer-term instruments, allowing consumers to benefit from more fixed priced contracts, and facilitating investments in clean technologies.

The proposal puts forward measures to protect consumers from such volatility, empower them with greater contract choice and more direct access to renewable and low carbon energy. To improve investment conditions for businesses, in particular those pursuing decarbonisation pathways, it proposes measures to counter exposure to short term price spikes through power purchase agreements and more prudential obligations for energy suppliers.

Key points

• The EESC welcomes the basic objective of the proposed Regulation to strengthen the monitoring and transparency of the wholesale energy markets. It underlines, continuous monitoring and analysis is required so that appropriate interventions and regulatory responses can be made in a timely manner on a sound basis. It also calls for proportionality in data reporting and the application of the once-only principle. The revision should aim at creating a transparent and non-discriminatory system, while avoiding a misuse of data collected.  
• The EESC welcomes the alignment of the definitions of inside information and market manipulation with financial market rules. The EESC also highlights the importance of cooperation between national and EU-level authorities and stresses the need to ensure an appropriate and efficient division of duties between national regulatory authorities and ACER.  
• The EESC highly regrets that the proposals regarding electricity market design have not gone through full consultation and impact assessment. It is of the opinion that no reform should be rushed and public consultations and impact assessments are precious tools in the law-making process. 

Additional information

Section: Transport, Energy, Infrastructure and the Information Society (TEN)

Opinion number: TEN/808

Opinion type: Mandatory

Referral: COM(2023) 147 final 2023/0076 COD

Rapporteur: Alena Mastantuono (Employers - Group I / Czech Republic)

Co-rapporteur: Lutz Ribbe (Civil Society Organisations - Group III / Germany)

Date of adoption by section: 16 May 2023

Result of the vote: 67 in favour, 1 against, 1 abstention

Date of adoption in plenary: 14-15 June 2023

Result of the vote: 217 in favour, 5 against, 5 abstentions

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