In an EU Council document dated 8 May, delegations are invited to adopt an agreement on the interpretation and application of the Energy Charter Treaty, known as the ‘inter se’ agreement.
This states that the ECT arbitration clause cannot be applied to disputes between a Member State and an investor from another Member State if the first Member State takes measures that affect an investment made on its territory.
In the Komstroy judgment (see EUROPE 12782/13), the Court of Justice of the EU ruled that Article 26 of the EC Treaty should not apply to such intra-EU disputes.
Parliament intends to adopt its position on the text at the June plenary session, following validation under the simplified procedure at the joint meeting of the Committee on International Trade(INTA) and Industry, Research and Energy (ITRE) Committee on 29 January (see EUROPE 13568/14). The European Parliament’s position validates the European Commission’s initial proposals for the EU and the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom).
On the EU Council side, the document explains that only the decision concerning the EU has been adopted by the Trade Policy Committee. The one concerning Euratom was not validated, “in the absence of unanimity”, Hungary having opposed it.
Thus, “technical amendments to the ‘inter se’ agreement and the EU decision are necessary to remove references to Euratom”, says the Polish Presidency, which adds that the required changes “have been discussed informally with Parliament’s services”.
To see the document: https://aeur.eu/f/gsl (Original version in French by Pauline Denys)