In November 2017, the European Commission proposed an amendment to the Gas Directive (2009/73/EC) to ensure that gas pipelines from and to third countries are subject to the common rules of the internal gas market. The aim of this extension of the Gas Directive is to increase competition between gas suppliers and to boost energy security in the Energy Union.

Given the increasing dependency on gas imports, this amendment raises a number of political and economic questions in particular concerning its implications for current and future investments, regulatory burden for national authorities, and the autonomy of Member States in conducting external energy policy.  

The objective of the hearing is to gather relevant views of experts and stakeholders that will help the EESC shape a comprehensive view of civil society on the Commission's proposal. 

Energy is a key priority of the current European Commission with its flagship policy initiative of the European Energy Union (EUEU). One key element of the flagship initiative concerns the expansion of renewables and a fundamental redesign of the energy markets in order to promote renewables, decentralized production and an active role for consumers. In its vision for the Energy Union, the Commission aims at putting "citizens at [the EUEU's] core". Changes in energy consumption and production patterns are in fact already occurring on the ground. New players are entering markets hitherto dominated by large manufacturers and distributors of energy. With the arrival of small-scale decentralized energy installations located in domestic backyards, the term "prosumers" emerged, i.e. entities/households that are producers and consumers of energy in one.