Parliament won't 'roll over' on EU electricity plan, says MEP

STRASBOURG - The European parliament has adopted a report favouring full ownership unbundling in the electricity market, pitting it against national governments, who favour a 'third way'.

Welsh socialist deputy Eluned Morgan, rapporteur on the internal market in electricity, said that the proposals were a strong sign of parliament’s vital role in scrutinising legislation with the council.

“We are co-legislators, so we won’t just be rolling over,” she said in a press conference on Wednesday. “We are now in a very strong position for us to deal with the council.”

The report rejects an agreement reached by member states at the beginning of June to set up two alternatives to unbundling, 'independent system operators' and 'independent transmission operators', which would have allowed firms to retain all their assets as long as they ensured that production and distribution of electricity was managed separately.

Morgan said that the adoption of the report showed that parliament demanded a “strong separation between supply and transmission” of electricity in the EU, which is essential to ensure genuine competition and investment in the energy market.

“We need a shake-up of the electricity market to introduce true competition,” she said. “If we don’t get the investment, the lights will go out in Europe."

New consumer protection measures were also strengthened in the report, including the right to withdraw from contracts without charge, the establishment of independent complaints services and the right to be informed of actual electricity consumption and costs.

Spanish centre-right MEP Alejo Vidal-Quadras, whose report on access to the network for cross-border exchanges in electricity was also adopted in plenary on Wednesday, stressed why these measures were important.

“Consumers should be informed properly about the energy they consume, the amount they consume and the price of their electricity,” he said.

He added that the strong show of support today for parliament’s proposals had brought a spirit of optimism among MEPs. “It’s always good to win. After the Irish referendum, we need an injection of satisfaction in this parliament,” he said.

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