Position paper on the Commission proposal for a Directive on Energy Efficiency

European Energy Regulators welcome the European Commission’s proposal for a Directive on Energy Efficiency (COM(2011)370). The proposed Directive has direct implications for the activities of regulators, who have to ensure that customer interests are always taken into account and that competition is not distorted. In some Member States, they are directly involved in the regulation and implementation of policy schemes to promote energy efficiency. Generally speaking, we can see a case for the European legislator to propose new responsibilities for national regulators (NRAs), consistent across the EU, in relation to energy efficiency. This clear basis would make it easier for NRAs to contribute to the overall effort of achieving energy savings and to ensure proper market functioning at the same time.
Whilst we welcome the intent of the Directive, we see scope to make important improvements to several of the provisions to ensure the Directive achieves its overall objectives, without causing unintended consequences to other aspects of the internal energy market.