European Energy Strategy Hinges on Ukraine, Transparency?
While Brussels’ strategy seems to hinge more and more on stronger ties with Ukraine, European Commissioner for Competition Margrethe Vestager launched on Wednesday the Commission's third high-profile inquiry in three weeks, taking aim at state aids to utilities.
European authorities will investigate whether capacity mechanisms, designed to encourage investment in power plants to fill the expected capacity gap and decrease the likelihood of black-outs, are effective and don't distort competition.
"My role is to safeguard that public measures to underpin investment in electricity supplies do not unduly favour particular producers or technologies, or create obstacles to trade across national borders. For example, in some cases it might be more efficient to invest in improving electricity grid connections between EU countries than to build new power stations” Commissioner Vestager said in a note.
The Commission will investigate these schemes in eleven EU countries (Belgium, Croatia, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Spain and Sweden).
‘It will then assess the replies and invite comments on its preliminary findings before the end of 2015 and plans to publish the final results mid-2016.’
A few hours before Vestager’s announcement, another European Commissioner intervened in Kiev to say that Brussels wants Ukraine to be part of the European energy market.
“The new gas law, adopted by the Rada on 9 April, will now bring Ukraine's gas sector legislation in full compliance with the EU energy market. The Government has now six months to fully implement this decision by adopting the relevant secondary legislation. This will open up new ways of cooperation and new avenues for investment” Vice President of the European Commission Maroš Šefčovič said on Tuesday.
Šefčovič then remained in Kiev on Wednesday to discuss the country’s reforms and the opportunities stemming from Ukraine’s membership in the Energy Community. He also met with Ukrainian high officials to speak about the Association Agreement/DCFTA.