EREF Press Release
Prerequisites for a successful and beneficial new EU Energy Market Design
Brussels, 8 October 2015
The European Renewable Energies Federation (EREF) publishes today its position paper on a future energy market design for the European Union. This paper is complementary to EREF’s reply to the European Commission’s public online consultation on a new Energy Market Design which will end today.
EREF highly welcomes the European Commission’s initiative which will be, among others, discussed at today’s Firenze European Electricity Regulatory Forum.
In order to reach the Commission’s aim of setting the necessary framework conditions for a flexible and efficient energy market which puts renewable energy and energy efficiency at its core, EREF highlights the following key features as essential to guarantee security of supply, cost minimization, innovation and sustainability:
- Creation of a fully functioning intraday and common balancing markets;
- Strengthened role for prosumers including a high emphasis on self-consumption;
- Promotion and exploitation of flexibility options in terms of generation, consumption and storage; and
- Focus on regional and de-centralised energy production and
Until the new market design fully functions and a true equal level playing field for all participants is reached, EREF regards the following issues as a prerequisite to successfully master the energy transition and to reach the EU’s decarbonisation goals:
- Priority dispatch for renewables; and
- Continued national support for renewables with strong emphasis on a support for small and medium sized projects under FiT mechanisms and without auctioning
EREF’s President Savvas Seimanidis welcomes the Commission’s will to transform the current centralised conventional energy system with monopolistic market conditions into a resilient Energy Union with an ambitious climate policy as its core. “Consequently”, he
requests, “this process must be accompanied by phasing out of fossil and nuclear energy.”
Dr. Dörte Fouquet, EREF’s Director, adds that “the European Commission and Member States must stay focused on the goal “to make the EU the world number one in renewable energies” and design new EU energy market design as the backbone for an energy system change in accordance to this goal.”
For more information on this matter, please contact
Dr. Dörte Fouquet Dirk Hendricks
EREF Director EREF Senior Policy Advisor
doerte.fouquet@eref-europe.org dirk.hendricks@eref-europe.org