Convening under the Moldovan Presidency in Chisinau, the 17th Energy Community Ministerial Council focused on Energy Community Treaty reforms and the 2030 energy and climate framework. Opening the meeting, H.E. Mr. Anatol Usatîi, Minister of Economy and Infrastructure of Moldova said: “2019 marks another year of reforms at national, regional and European level along our commonly agreed goals under the Energy Community Treaty. We worked to live up to the requirements of a single pan-European energy market and we made steps towards setting sustainable development targets for the 2030 horizon. However, 2019 has brought to our energy agenda new challenges and opportunities, adding new tasks to our common mission. On this ground, we have not only to face the current implementation challenges, but also to act and prevent theoretical threats from turning into a real-life crisis. And here, I would like to reiterate that the Energy Community is a pivotal instrument for strengthening energy security in Moldova and the entire Europe”.
On the occasion of the Ministerial Council, Moldova and Ukraine signed a Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation in the area of security of gas supply. “The significance of this Memorandum is that it for the first time brings to life the principle of solidarity inside the Energy Community,” explained the Director of the Secretariat, Janez Kopac.
Representing the European Union at the meeting, Anne-Charlotte Bournoville, Head of the International Relations and Enlargement Unit of the Directorate General for Energy of the European Commission, underlined: “The Energy Community is an essential part of the external energy cooperation toolkit of the European Union. In order to maximize its role, it is crucial that the Energy Community stays fit for the changing environment around us. This is the principle purpose of the ongoing process to modernize the Treaty. Moreover, the Energy Community needs to follow the EU in its climate neutrality goals and joins the path towards decarbonisation by 2050”.
The Council took stock of the ongoing negotiations to improve the functioning of the Energy Community Treaty. The reforms shall strengthen the Treaty’s enforcement mechanism including by new implementation mechanism similar to those in the EU and introducing new provisions for facilitating energy trade and enhancing market integration between Energy Community Contracting Parties and EU Member States by a system of reciprocal rights and obligations. For the first time, the Treaty will task the Energy Community to combat climate change and underlines the importance of the Paris Agreement. It is expected that the negotiations will be finalized in the first half of 2020.
The European Commission presented ongoing work on 2019 General Policy Guidelines on 2030 Targets and Climate Neutrality for the Energy Community and its Contracting Parties. The proposal on the 2030 targets is now expected in the first half of 2021, alongside the relevant legislative package.
The Ministerial Council did not reach the unanimity required to establish serious and persistent breaches of the Energy Community Treaty on Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia.
Source: Energy Community
