Consultations between the UK and the EU in their open dispute at the World Trade Organization (WTO) have produced results. London has responded to questions posed by the European Commission in March 2022 on its support programme for green energy projects. The EU criticised it for taking into account the origin of materials when granting financial support to economic operators (see EUROPE 12920/16).
In an exchange of letters with the Commission, the UK has indicated that there is no requirement for beneficiaries of the Low Carbon Energy Support Programme to have a certain volume of material from the UK. The information required from traders on the origin of products is for documentation purposes only, according to UK Trade Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan.
London has also issued additional guidelines for operators, to ensure that they understand the rules.
The European Commission therefore decided to accept these explanations and to end the dispute it had opened in the WTO. “The UK has provided clarity and assurances that European industry can compete fairly in the UK market. The WTO consultations were useful in this regard and were able to address the EU’s concerns”, said EU Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis. (Original version in French by Léa Marchal)