Strasbourg, 07/07/2005 (Agence Europe) - With the adoption at first reading on Tuesday of the report by British Giles Bryan Chichester (EPP-ED) on the Parliament and Council's proposal for a directive on measures aimed at guaranteeing electricity supply security and investment in infrastructure, MEPs voted amendments aimed at simplifying the Commission's initial proposal on setting up a legislative framework for electricity supply security. As the electricity grid remains exposed to all kinds of disruption and to the threat of a giant electricity failure as was the case in Italy during the 2003 blackout, the legislative framework aims to ensure continuity of production, transmission, distribution and provision of electricity in the EU. Following the rapporteur's view that the initial Commission proposal seemed to be a blend of the aims set out in the directive on the internal market for electricity (2003/54/EC) and the concern that there could be another blackout similar to that in Italy, MEPs voted several amendments to the initial Commission proposal to ensure the directive completes that on the internal market for electricity by avoiding reshuffling of the market mechanisms and focusing on the technical aspects of supply security. Other amendments did away with several provisions of the initial proposal that MEPs considered pointlessly interventionist. Unlike the Commission, MEPs hoped emphasis would be placed on electricity supply security and on the need to have sufficient production capacities rather than pushing Member States to respond to market requirements - the Commission's initial proposal gave priority to interconnections between Member States in order to allow increased competition between companies.
The main provisions of the directive set out measures aimed at guaranteeing electricity supply security to ensure the internal electricity market works properly. The directive calls on Member States to promote a transparent strategy that is neither discriminatory nor incompatible with the requirements of the competitive internal market for electricity. It also promotes a good level of production, striking a balance between the available production capacity, supply and demand (the text stresses that Member States must take appropriate measures to encourage effective use of energy and incite new production enterprises to enter the market) and an appropriate level of interconnection. The text stresses the need to carry out major investment in the transport networks to ensure smooth market functioning. Such investment is also necessary for the network to be able to face up to growing demand without companies and citizens having to suffer from frequent supply failures.
Furthermore, we note that, in the general provisions of the directive, MEPs mainly stressed they were keen on Member States defining the roles and responsibilities of seven categories of market players (transport and distribution network managers, producers, suppliers, consumers, regulatory authorities and Member States) instead of the two initially proposed by the Commission (transport network managers and suppliers only). MEPs consider, moreover, that the Member States must create a stable investment climate and a sound wholesale market.
The Parliament also hoped to limit the competences of the regulatory authority which, in the Commission's proposal, was to impose financial sanctions on transport network managers if their projects are not on time, order a transport network manager to complete the work at a predetermined date and launch calls for tenders so that work is carried out by a contractor.
As the Council had announced that it supported the text amended by the Parliament, the procedure was to be completed with the first reading. Member Sates should transpose the directive at the latest two years after it takes effect.