15 Amendments of Nicolás GONZÁLEZ CASARES related to 2021/0425(COD)
Amendment 150 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 14
Recital 14
(14) Member States should haveensure that household customers and, where Member States consider it to be appropriate, small enterprises, enjoy the right to be supplied with gas of a specified quality at clearly comparable, transparent and competitive prices. Member States should maintain a wide discretion to impose public service obligations on gas undertakings in pursuing objectives of general economic interest. However, public service obligations in the form of price setting for the supply of natural gas constitute a fundamentally distortive measure that often leads to the accumulation of tariff deficits, the limitation of consumer choice, poorer incentives for energy saving and energy efficiency investments, lower standards of service, lower levels of consumer engagement and satisfaction, and the restriction of competition, as well as to there being fewer innovative products and services on the market. Consequently, Member States should apply other policy tools, in particular targeted social policy measures, to safeguard the affordability of natural gas supply to their citizens. Public interventions in price setting for the supply of natural gas should be carried out only as public service obligations and should be subject to specific conditions. A fully liberalised, well-functioning retail natural gas market would stimulate price and non- price competition among existing suppliers and provide incentives to new market entrants, thereby improving consumer choice and satisfaction.
Amendment 151 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 15
Recital 15
(15) Public service obligations in the form of price setting for the supply of natural gas should be used without overriding the principle of open markets in clearly defined circumstances and beneficiaries and should be limited in duration. Such circumstances might occur for example where supply is severely constrained, causing significantly higher gas prices than normal, or in the event of a market failure where interventions by regulatory authorities and competition authorities have proven to be ineffective. This would disproportionately affect households and, in particular, vulnerable customers who typically expend a higher share of their disposable income on energy bills compared to high-income consumers. In order to mitigate the distortive effects of public service obligations in price setting for the supply of natural gas, Member States applying such interventions should put in place additional measures, including measures to prevent distortions of price setting in the wholesale market. Member States should ensure that all beneficiaries of regulated prices are able to benefit fully from the offers available on the competitive market when they choose to do so. To that end, they should be directly and regularly informed of the offers and savings available on the competitive market, and should be provided with assistance to respond to and benefit from market-based offers.
Amendment 164 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 22
Recital 22
(22) The natural gas market witnesses poor customer satisfaction and engagement as well as slow uptake of new renewable and low-carbon gases, which all reflect limited competition in many Member States. Unlike falling prices in wholesale markets, nNatural gas prices for household customers rose in the last decade resulting in household consumers paying two or three times more for their natural gas consumption than industrial customers.
Amendment 179 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 29
Recital 29
(29) The modernisation of the gas sector is expected to lead to substantial economic and enviromental benefits in terms of both improved retail competition and its social and distributional benefits and customer empowerment, including strengthened contractual rights and better available information on consumption and energy sources leading to greener choices. Energy communities-of-interest should contribute to the uptake of renewable gas.
Amendment 192 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 37
Recital 37
(37) Bills and billing information are an important means to inform and empower final customers. Energy bills remain the most common consumer concern and source of consumer complaints, a factor that contributes to the persistently low levels of consumer satisfaction and engagement in the gas sector. Provisions for billing information in the gas sector also lag behind rights granted to consumers in the electricity sector. It is therefore necessary to align them and to set minimum requirements for bills and billing information in the gas sector, so that consumers have access to transparent, easy to understand information. Bills should convey information to the final consumers on their consumption and costs, thus facilitating comparison between offers and switching supplier, as well as information on their consumer rights (such as on alternative dispute resolution). In addition, bills should be a tool to actively engage consumers in the market, so that consumers can manage their consumption patterns and make greener choices. It is important to provide comprehensive and accurate information to consumers to ensure they are aware of their environmental impact and, thus, consumers can express their preference for the most sustainable energy carriers.
Amendment 201 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 45
Recital 45
(45) Member States should take appropriate measures, such as providing benefits by means of their social security systems, to ensure the necessary supply to vulnerable customers, or providing for support for energy efficiency improvements, to address energy poverty where identified pursuant to Article 3(3), point (d) of Regulation (EU) 2018/1999 of the European Parliament and of the Council9 , including in the broader context of poverty. Such measures could differ according to the particular circumstances in the Member States in question and cshould include social or energy policy measures relating to the payment of gas bills, to investment in the energy efficiency of residential buildings, or to consumer protection such as disconnection safeguards. _________________ 9 Regulation (EU) 2018/1999 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2018 on the Governance of the Energy Union and Climate Action, amending Regulations (EC) No 663/2009 and (EC) No 715/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council, Directives 94/22/EC, 98/70/EC, 2009/31/EC, 2009/73/EC, 2010/31/EU, 2012/27/EU and 2013/30/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council, Council Directives 2009/119/EC and (EU) 2015/652 and repealing Regulation (EU) No 525/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 328, 21.12.2018, p. 1).
Amendment 249 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 108
Recital 108
(108) The regulatory authorities and ACER should provide information on the hydrogen market to ensure transparency, including aspects such as supply and demand, transport infrastructure, quality of service, sources, cross-border trade, investments, consumer prices, market liquidity.
Amendment 451 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 5 – paragraph 2
Article 5 – paragraph 2
2. Having full regard to the relevant provisions of the TFEU , in particular Article 106 thereof, Member States may impose on natural gas and hydrogen undertakings , in the general economic interest, public service obligations which may relate to security, including security of supply, regularity, and quality and price of supplies, and environmental protection, including energy efficiency, energy from renewable sources and climate protection. Such obligations shall be clearly defined, transparent, non-discriminatory, verifiable and shall guarantee equality of access for natural gas undertakings and hydrogen undertakings of the Union to national consumers. Public service obligations which concern the price setting for the supply of gases shall comply with the requirements set out in Article 4 of this Directive.
Amendment 454 #
Amendment 506 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 8 – paragraph 4
Article 8 – paragraph 4
4. The obligations laid down in paragraph 2 shall apply regardless of whether low carbon fuels are produced within the Union or are imported. Information about the geographic origin, recognition that the energy content is derived from non-renewable sources and feedstock type of low carbon fuels or low carbon hydrogen per fuel supplier shall be made available to consumers, including on the websites of operators, suppliers or the relevant competent authorities and shall be updated on an annual basis.
Amendment 614 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 16 – paragraph 2
Article 16 – paragraph 2
2. Member States shall ensure the deployment in their territories of smart metering systems that assist the active participation of customers. Such deployment may be subject to a cost- benefit assessment which shall be undertaken in accordance with the principles laid down in Annex II.
Amendment 633 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 25 – paragraph 1
Article 25 – paragraph 1
Member States shall take appropriate measures to protect final customers, and shall, in particular, ensure that there are adequate safeguards to protect vulnerable customers. In this context, each Member State shall define the concept of vulnerable customers which may refer to energy poverty. Measures to protect vulnerable consumers may include, inter alia, to the prohibition of disconnection to such customers in critical times. The concept of vulnerable customers may include income levels, the share of energy expenditure of disposable income, the energy efficiency of homes, critical dependence on electrical equipment for health reasons, age or other criteria.
Amendment 638 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 25 – paragraph 2 a (new)
Article 25 – paragraph 2 a (new)
Member States shall take appropriate measures, such as providing benefits by means of their social security systems to ensure the necessary supply to vulnerable customers, or providing for support for energy efficiency improvements, to address energy poverty where identified pursuant to point (d) of Article 3(3) of Regulation (EU) 2018/1999, including in the broader context of poverty. Such measures shall not impede the effective opening of the market set out in Article 3 or market functioning and shall be notified to the Commission, where relevant, in accordance with Article 5. Such notifications may also include measures taken within the general social security system.
Amendment 695 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 37 – paragraph 2
Article 37 – paragraph 2
2. The transmission system operators shall not be entitled to refuse economically reasonable and technically feasable connection requests of a new production facility installation for renewable and low carbon gases. Production facilities installations for renewable gases shall have priority to connect over facilities for low carbon gases.
Amendment 710 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 40 – paragraph 9
Article 40 – paragraph 9
9. The distribution system operators shall not be entitled to refuse economically reasonable and technically feasible connection requests of a new production facility for renewable and low carbon gases. Production facilities for renewable gases shall have priority to connect over facilities for low carbon gases.