The European Commission is referring Bulgaria and Slovakia to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) on Thursday 26 January for failing to transpose the revised EU Renewable Energy Directive (2018/2001) (RED II).
While Member States had until 30 June 2021 to transpose the Directive into national law, Sofia and Bratislava have so far not notified the Commission of any transposition measures.
The institution had sent a letter of formal notice to both countries in July 2021, followed by a reasoned opinion. As these actions have had no effect, it is now asking the CJEU to impose financial penalties on Bulgaria and Slovakia.
This is not the first time that the Commission has taken legal action against Member States regarding the application of the RED II Directive. It has already initiated infringement proceedings against each of the 27 EU countries for failure to communicate measures for the full transposition of the Directive by the deadline of 30 June 2021. (Original version in French by Damien Genicot)