Internal electricity market must deliver for citizens and the climate

The European Parliament’s Industry, Research and Energy Committee today adopted a series of legislative reports on the internal electricity market. The Greens/EFA group welcomes the parliament’s position on limiting public support for coal, which is much stronger than the Council's, but questions the insufficient measures for fighting energy poverty.

Greens/EFA energy spokesperson Claude Turmes comments:

"The internal electricity market needs to prioritise the rights of consumers and efforts to tackle climate change. Unlike the member states, who want to continue to subsidise coal at the expense of our climate commitments, and in stark contradiction with the Paris Agreement, the Parliament wants to structurally reform the market to make it more flexible and fit for the large-scale integration of renewable energy. The measures adopted today would help protect renewable energy projects which are still the victims of market distortions favouring fossil fuels and nuclear.

"The Energy Union needs to deliver for citizens. It is welcome that the majority of MEPs agree that everyone should be able to change their energy provider freely and without delay, enjoy transparency in billing and metering practices, benefit from fair prices and engage in self-consumption or local energy communities. These new rules, combined with the progressive phasing-out of regulated price often misused for the benefit of incumbents, would help accelerate the transition towards a fully decarbonised economy. However, the majority of MEPs are still failing to grasp the full extent of energy poverty in the EU. Too many people still can't afford to heat their homes and we regret the absence of more ambitious provisions to prevent immediate disconnection for those experiencing difficulty paying their bills."

Next steps

The committee voted on the recast of the Electricity Market Regulation and the Electricity Market Directive. They also voted on the mandate for entering into trilogue negotiations with the European Commission and the Council. Unless this is challenged in the next Strasbourg plenary session (12-15 March) trilogues can commence.