MEPs Urge EC to Take Stance on Grid Access Fee for Green Energy Producers in Bulgaria

Politics » BULGARIA IN EU | March 26, 2013, Tuesday // 13:48
Bulgaria: MEPs Urge EC to Take Stance on Grid Access Fee for Green Energy Producers in Bulgaria Six MEPs have sent a letter to EU Energy Commissioner Guenther Oettinger to express their concern over the growing practice of creating obstructions before the development of renewable energy in the EU. Photo by EPA/BGNES

Six MEPs have sent a letter to EU Energy Commissioner Guenther Oettinger to express their concern over the growing practice of creating obstructions before the development of renewable energy in the EU.

Bulgaria's Ivaylo Kalfin (Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats), Fiona Hall, (UK, ALDE), Judith Merkis (the Netherlands, Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats), Kathleen Van Brempt (Belgium, Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats), Francisco Sosa Wagner (Spain, independent), and Claude Turmes (Luxembourg, Green Paty), insist that the EC come up with a stance on the adoption of fees on renewable energy in Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, and Spain, according to reports of the press office of Kalfin.

The letter mentions the decision of Bulgaria's State Commission for Energy and Water Regulation (DKEVR) in end-2012 for the surprising introduction of a grid access fee for renewable energy producers.

The MEPs note that the fee technically changes the legal terms for investors retroactively and also introduces differentiated rates in violation of competition rules.

Reminding that renewable energy producers in Bulgaria have already complained to the EC about the measures of the energy watchdog, the MEPs suggest that Bulgaria's "example" could spread to other EU Member States unless countered decisively by the EC.

The MEPs also argue that the decisions in Bulgaria, the Czech Republic and Spain, create a dangerous precedent for the European renewable energy regulatory framework by setting a bad example for investors in the sector.

The six MEPs call on Oettinger to inspect whether the decisions of the abovementioned countries involve a breach of EU law and to take the necessary steps to remedy the situation.

"The incapability of the Borisov Cabinet to handle control over electricity price formation and the strive to secure benefits for a selected group of companies enjoying preferential treatment led to an unnecessary increase in prices for end-consumers and legal absurdities" Kalfin comments .

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Tags: MEPs, Ivaylo Kalfin, renewable energy, Guenther Oettinger, State Commission for Energy and Water Regulation, green energy

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