In this episode of FSR Talks, we will be discussing consumer empowerment in the energy transition with the Council of European Energy Regulators (CEER) and the European Commission.

Specifically, our discussants will cover the activities of the ‘Working Group on Consumer Engagement’ of the 13th Citizens Energy Forum, with a focus on the availability and quality of sustainable ‘green offerings’ in gas markets.

Background

The second half of 2021 has seen record energy prices across the EU and beyond. This has contributed to a reconfiguration of energy markets, with fewer energy suppliers and a higher level of consumer interest to tackle rising energy costs through their choice of suppliers and tariffs. Although this period has placed considerable stress on consumers, suppliers, and governments alike, it has also created the conditions for engagement on the issue – contributing to an inflection point for evolution.

Guarantees of Origin (GO) for electricity have become quite well established in the electricity sector following the Clean Energy Package (CEP), allowing consumers to opt for renewable-only electricity through their choice of tariff or supplier. These offering are often price competitive with other non-renewable tariffs, and have proven increasingly popular in recent years, demonstrating to energy suppliers the appetite for such services. Similar offerings are emerging in the gas sector, but at a slower rate and with unique challenges. If consumers are to be empowered to leverage their agency in the energy transition, they need credible, transparent, and accessible means to do so.

In light of the upcoming 13th Citizens Energy Forum taking place in December, imminent EU legislation on gas market decarbonisation, as well the prevailing energy market conditions – the current circumstances are arguably an opportune moment to capitalise on momentum towards consumer engagement. The Working Group on Consumer Engagement looks to bring together key stakeholders on these issues, and this FSR Talks session will be an opportunity to examine the activities of the group in more detail, as well as discuss the subject in its broader context.

Hosted by Ilaria Conti, Head of FSR Gas

Panelists:

Natalie McCoy, CEER

Achille Hannoset, European Commission

A Q&A with the audience will follow.

#FSRTalks

Live interviews with experts from the wider network of the school to showcase and discuss a recent work in a light and interactive way.

Hosts: Prof. Jean-Michel Glachant, Ilaria Conti, Swetha Baghwat

Governance Arrangements and Market Structure

In 2020, the Florence School of Regulation produced a paper highlighting municipal solid waste (MSW) key data and challenges in Europe in terms of institutional setting, market characteristics, funding arrangements and current situation against MSW EU targets, underlining recent waste generation and treatment trends, and looking at future capital and operational expenditure required to reach MSW EU targets and the associated financing options.

The same year, two online events were held, gathering regulators, operators, professional associations, researchers, policy-decision makers, and financing institutions who shared their views on the current and forthcoming challenges of the sector.

It is time to consolidate this dialogue and work stream into a “European Platform on MSW Regulation and Governance” that will address key regulatory and governance issues, and thus contribute to pave the road for the necessary reforms and changes to successfully implement the EU Circular Economy Package.

To contribute and ensure a high-level and independent debate and research on economically and socially sound regulation and governance, the EU Platform on MSW Regulation and Governance will continue to gather a variety of stakeholders including regulators, operators, local authorities, the European Commission, academics and researchers, EU financial Institutions, etc.

The first meeting of the EU Platform on MSW Regulation and Governance will be held virtually on 16th November from 10am to 12:30pm and will focus on governance arrangements, cost analysis and market structure of the MSW sector in Europe with contributions from researchers, NGOs, regulators, and operators.

 

The Workshop will aim at:

• Identifying the challenges, but also the benefits of holistic planning of the needs for electricity, gas, and hydrogen transport services, based on the forecasting of the level and geographical pattern of demand for the different energy vectors and hydrogen in particular (being the newest among them), and taking into account the interlinkages with other contiguous sectors;
• Assessing how the hydrogen network could be best planned, taking into account the existing gas infrastructure available for repurposing, but also the opportunity and cost of developing new dedicated assets;
• Considering how the cost of the hydrogen network should be recovered through the charging for their usage.

Background

The European Union is committed to decarbonise its energy system at a large scale. The targets are set, the path – energy efficiency first, electrification as far as possible, usage of hydrogen and other types of “low-carbon gas” in the hard-to-electrify sectors – is agreed as well. The EU decarbonisation challenge is characterised by the need for speed, cost-efficiency, and the subsidiarity principle on the one side and the existing infrastructures, market and regulatory frameworks for electricity and gas on the other hand. The mantras of legal and regulatory certainty, transparency and predictability are still very valid, maybe even more so in times of such a fundamental transformation of the whole EU economy and energy system.

The European Commission has proposed the first set of rules in its Fit for 55-package1 in July 2021, focusing on the (renewable) energy source and sink aspect at large. Further proposals focusing on the infrastructure and market aspects, also for decarbonised gases, are expected by the end of 2021.

In fact, an effective, efficient, and affordable energy transition will require:

• a more holistic approach to network planning, including the electricity, gas and hydrogen grids in a consistent framework, taking the interlinkages with other contiguous sectors – e.g. transport and heating and cooling – and the opportunities provided by digitalisation into account. In the future, hydrogen may support the electricity sector by providing additional and more effective opportunities for storing energy and thus to help manage the likely mismatch between the variable electricity generation from renewables and the demand profile of consumers, as well as congestion in the electricity grid. Hydrogen is currently produced and consumed in localised clusters, which are expected to develop into “hydrogen valleys”. It is however still uncertain if and when a hydrogen “backbone” network will be needed, which will depend on the demand for hydrogen by the different consuming sectors, the geographical pattern of demand and supply, and on the extent to which hydrogen imports will be needed to meet demand;
• an efficient and no-regret path to the development of hydrogen transport capability. The expected decrease in gas demand in Europe and the resulting reduction in gas volumes in the existing network will make some gas infrastructure available for possible repurposing to transport hydrogen. However, the availability of such infrastructure should not be the main driver in planning a future hydrogen backbone. A cost-benefit analysis should be carried out, comparing different ways of transporting hydrogen: in new pipelines, in repurposed pipelines or using non-pipeline facilities;
• a charging structure for the use of the hydrogen transmission infrastructure which is conducive to the development of competition and the creation of an internal market for hydrogen. The current tarification of the gas network has served well the transition of the gas sector from its previous vertically integrated structure and contracts with delivery at flanges and destination clauses. However, it has also shown its limits, with tariff pancaking distorting competition in the internal gas market. Therefore, the opportunity for a different approach for the hydrogen network needs to be considered.

Correspondingly, the Workshop will be structured in three sessions:

• Session I will focus on the challenges and benefits of a holistic planning of the demand for energy network services in Europe;
• Session II will zoom into the planning of the hydrogen network;
• Session III will aim at identifying the main principles for a hydrogen tariff structure which is conducive to undistorted competition and a well-functioning internal market for hydrogen.

Please note that this event is by invitation only.

The Workshop will aim at reviewing and comparing the experience with the implementation of incentive-based regulation in the energy, transport, and water sectors.

Background

Incentive-based regulation has been used to regulate private monopolies across Europe since the mid-1980’s. It may take a number of different forms, and has been the subject of attention both by academics and practitioners.

When compared to cost-of-service/rate-of-return regulation, incentive-based regulation has been credited with providing greater incentives for efficiency and some degree of flexibility to regulated companies on how to pursue it, while reducing the cost of regulation.

Incentive-based regulation has been the default regulatory approach for network activities in the energy sector for more than three decades. However, it has been increasingly perceived to increase risk and uncertainty in regulated companies’ earnings and has shown its limitation when applied to highly capital-intensive industries.

More recently, with the greater importance of new technologies and therefore innovation, and the massive investments required to decarbonise the energy sector activities, a different approach has been experimented, which put emphasis on the need for innovation and investment, while protecting consumers by ensuring fair prices.

In the transport sector, despite the introduction of competition in many transport modes, infrastructure keeps being operated under monopoly rights or at least under very limited competition in most modes. Incentive-based regulation is increasingly used to foster efficiency in the operation of infrastructure.

In the water sector, cost plus and rate of return are more commonly used by regulators across EU Member States than price and revenue cap tariff setting methods. Nevertheless, great emphasis is being put on performance and quality of service through alternative regulatory tools such as key performance indicators targeting drinking water quality, water losses, pipes breakdown, internal sewer flooding among others. More recently, regulators have started introducing economic incentives to promote the ecologic transition of water and sanitation operators.

Structure

Against this background, the Workshop will be structured in three sessions:

• Session I will focus on the taxonomy for incentive-based regulation, as used in the different sectors covered by the Workshop;
• Session II will review and compare the experience with the implementation of incentive-based regulation in the sectors covered by the Workshop;
• Session III will aim at drawing conclusions, based on the available experience, and at formulating recommendations on best practices for the implementation of incentive-based regulation in the network industries. It will also consider how incentive-based regulation compare with the newer forms of regulation for network industries which have emerged as a result of the increasing need for innovation and investment.

This event is by invitation only.

The event is under Chatham House rules. Please do not tweet speakers’ names, but use our event hashtags: #FSRPolicyWorkshop #BrexitElectricity

The next edition of the FSR Energy Union Law Area’s popular biannual update on recent and pending energy case law at the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) will take place online on Friday, 3 December 2021 from 14.30-16.00 CET.

We are pleased to confirm that we will once again be joined by Dr Adrien de Hauteclocque, Head of Cabinet of the President of the General Court, who will provide attendees with an insight into the most important energy law developments at the General Court and the Court of Justice.

The cases we will address include:

C-718/18 – Commission v Germany

C-848/19 P – Germany v Poland

T-300/19 – Achema and Lifosa v Commission

C-57/19 P – Commission v Tempus energy and Tempus Energy Technology

T-167/19 – Tempus Energy Germany and T Energy Sweden v Commission

An overview of cases currently pending before the Court will also be provided.

 

Programme

Introduction

Leigh Hancher, Florence School of Regulation

C-718/18 – Commission v Germany

Adrien de Hauteclocque, Head of Cabinet of the President of the General Court

C-848/19 P – Germany v Poland

Max Münchmeyer, PhD Researcher, European University Institute

T-300/19 – Achema and Lifosa v Commission

C-57/19 P – Commission v Tempus energy and Tempus Energy Technology

T-167/19 – Tempus Energy Germany and T Energy Sweden v Commission

Leigh Hancher, Florence School of Regulation

An Overview of Pending Cases

Adrien de Hauteclocque, Head of Cabinet of the President of the General Court

Questions and Discussion

 

More on ECJ Case Law

If you want to catch up on earlier CJEU developments in the year, you can watch the recordings of our sessions from April 2020 here, November 2020 here and June 2021 here.

Energy Union Law & Policy

FSR Energy Union Law area provides a forum for critical discussion and independent analysis of the developments in EU energy law and policy. Our activities are aimed at professionals from national energy regulatory authorities, European and international institutions, energy-focused law firms, consultancies and energy utility companies.

In December the European Commission will table the long-awaited legislative package that will provide the regulatory and legal framework for the future regulation and support of the EU’s emerging hydrogen market. This will cover issues such as:

• Which regulatory model – unbundling, TPA, tariff principles, should apply to the future hydrogen grid, and when?
• What is the appropriate definition for low-carbon hydrogen – which should qualify for inclusion in the EU’s future low and zero-carbon market?
• How should guarantees of origin and certification apply to low-carbon hydrogen?
• How to finance a hydrogen grid that will need to be built to excess capacity in the beginning?
• Should gas TSOs be the sole operators of the future hydrogen grid?
• How to regulate the gas and hydrogen RABs – joint? separate?

Join the next FSR debate to discuss these issues with our panel.

Agenda

Keynote address  Catharina Sikow-Magny, Director, DG ENER, EC

Round table discussion with:

François-Régis Mouton, Director IOGP Europe

Jan Ingwersen, Director-General ENTSOG

Jorgo Chatzimarkakis, CEO Hydrogen Europe

Nicola Rega, Energy director, CEFIC

#FSRDebates

The focus of this debate series is on policy issues to be discussed by a panel of experts. Learn more about the FSR series.

While not trying to pre-empt or anticipate the conclusions which ACER will reach in its assessment of the existing electricity market design, this Debate will aim at discussing the dimensions of the current market design which might need to be enhanced or supplemented to improve its performance in the context of the energy transition.

Background

“EU gas and electricity prices have increased rapidly and reached unprecedented levels. Gas prices in early October were 400% more expensive than in April 2021, driven significantly by global supply and demand dynamics. Electricity prices have increased by 200% over the same period, driven mainly by the gas prices”[1].

There seem to be many causes for the sharp increase in world gas prices, but the main ones appear to be a faster economic recovery after the pandemic, boosting a strong growth in demand in many regions, and a tight global LNG market.

While being the largest buyer of internationally traded gas (accounting for almost half of the volumes), Europe has little leverage on the global LNG market, where it is often a price taker.

Instead, electricity prices in Europe reflect demand and supply conditions in the Continent. These are clearly affected by international fuel prices, but also by other, more local factors, such as weather conditions and renewables-based electricity generation, as well as the market design.

A number of EU Member States have taken or are considering taking national uncoordinated actions to mitigate the impact of higher energy prices on consumers. Some of these measures are likely to affect – and possibly distort – cross-border trading. To tackle rising energy prices, while preventing damage to the Internal Energy Market, the European Commission has proposed a “toolbox for action and support”[2], outlining a set of measures which the Commission itself and Member States could adopt to deal with the current high-price situation. Many of these measures are aimed at mitigating the impact of higher energy prices on industry, businesses and households, especially the vulnerable ones. However, and interestingly, the Commission also intends to “task ACER to study the benefits and drawbacks of the existing electricity market design and propose recommendations for assessment by the Commission by April 2022”[3].

At the same time, ACER has already shared some considerations on the current electricity market design, including on the evergreen debate on pay-as-bid vs. pay-as-clear market models: “any future market design needs to be able to (a) remunerate technologies above their marginal costs, sometimes quite significantly so, and (b) incentivise the alleviation or smoothing of volatility in the market. The ‘pay-as-clear’ model allows for both of these elements”[4].

Join us to discuss energy prices and market design in the context of the energy transition.

A Q&A with the audience will follow.

 

Draft Programme

Introduction to the Debate and Opening Presentations

14.00 – 14.05   Introduction to the Debate

Alberto Pototschnig | Florence School of Regulation

14.05 – 14.15   The academic perspective

Carlos Batlle | Florence School of Regulation

14.15 – 14.25   ACER initial assessment of the causes of the recent increases in electricity prices

Rafael Muruais-Garcia | ACER

Panel Discussion: Introductory Remarks, Polls and Comments

Moderator: Alberto Pototschnig | Florence School of Regulation

14.25 – 14.50   Introductory remarks from the panellists

Yvan Hachez |Vice-Chair of Market & Investment Committee, Eurelectric
Inger Kristin Holm | Electricity Working Party, IFIEC
Verónica Sabau | Secretary General, Spanish Association of Independent Retailers  (TBC)

14.50 – 14.55   Polls

14.55 – 15.15   Comments on the outcome of the poll and Q&A from the audience
Panellists

15.20 – 15.30   Concluding remarks
Leigh Hancher | Florence School of Regulation and Tilburg University
Alberto Pototschnig | Florence School of Regulation

 

 

[1] ACER, High Energy Prices, October 2021.

[2] Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the European Council, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions, Tackling rising energy prices: a toolbox for action and support, Brussels 13.10.2021, COM(2021) 660 final.

[3] Ibid, Section 3.2.1, page 15.

[4] ACER, High Energy Prices, October 2021, page 12.

Inspired by the recently published book “A Modern Guide to the Digitalization of Infrastructure”, this webinar will provide a comprehensive overview of how the digitalisation process affects infrastructure-based industries, including telecommunications, transport, energy, water and postal services.

The contributors of this book are the experts of DIGEX, a working group (think tank), Digitalising Infrastructure Group of Experts, established at the Florence School of Regulation.

At the webinar, DIGEX experts will share their views on how digitalisation is disrupting traditional infrastructure managers in terms of capacity management and traffic flows. They will also discuss key topics including data governance, data sharing, digital platforms, and sector convergence in relation to a specific type of infrastructure they are working on.

AGENDA

17:00 – 17:10 | Welcome, Introduction of the book

Prof. Juan Montero, Professor at EUI/ UNED; Editor of the book ‘A Modern Guide to the Digitalization of Infrastructure’

17:10-18:00 | Contribution from the authors

• Technology: Prof. Günter Knieps, Professor of Economics at the University of Freiburg

• Telecoms: Dr. Volker Stocker, Head of Research Group/Postdoctoral Researcher, The German Internet Institute / Technische Universität Berlin

• Maritime: Dr. Anastasia Tsvetkova, Docent, a postdoc researcher at the Laboratory of Industrial Management, Åbo Akademi University

• Aviation: Lorenzo Casullo, Associate Director, Ricardo

• Electricity: Nicolò Rossetto, Research Associate, Florence School of Regulation

• Water: Brenda Espinosa Apráez, PhD Researcher, Tilburg Law and Economic Center – Department of Law, Technology, Markets & Society, Tilburg University

18:00 – 18:20 | Q&A Session moderated by Prof. Juan Montero, Professor at EUI/ UNED; Editor of the book ‘A Modern Guide to the Digitalization of Infrastructure’

18:20 – 18:30 | Concluding remarks

Prof. Matthias Finger, Director of FSR-Transport, EUI; Editor of the book ‘A Modern Guide to the Digitalization of Infrastructure’

18:30 | Webinar ends

FSR Climate is pleased to announce its 7^th Annual Conference on the Economic Assessment of European Climate Policies to take place online on Monday 29 and Tuesday 30 November 2021 from 10:00 to 16:10 CET.

The conference will cover the main climate-related existing policies at EU, national, international and sub-national levels. It will include three sessions on Energy Efficiency and Renewables, Environmental taxation, and Emissions trading. In addition, the conference will comprise a keynote speech from Estelle Cantillon, and a policy session focused on carbon market integration.

Due to the travel and public gathering restrictions taken to limit the spread of COVID-19, the FSR Climate Annual Conference will be held online through Zoom Webinar.

 

Chair: Simone BORGHESI, FSR Climate – European University Institute

 

Monday 29 November

10:00-10:05 – Welcome & introduction

• Simone BORGHESI, FSR Climate – European University Institute

10:05-12:05 – Session on Emissions trading

• The Carbon Market Challenge: Preventing Abuse Through Effective Governance, Regina BETZ, Zurich University of Applied Sciences – ZHAW [abstract] [slides]
• ‪Coase and Cap-and-Trade: Evidence on the Independence Property from the European Carbon Market, Aleksandar ZAKLAN, DIW Berlin [paper] [slides]
• The European Emission Trading System, Overlapping Climate Policies & the Fit for 55 Package, Kenneth BRUNINX, University of Leuven [abstract] [slides]
• Investment Incentives in Tradable Emissions Markets with Price Floors, Frans DE VRIES, University of Aberdeen  Business School [abstract] [slides]

14:00-16:00 – Session on Environmental taxation

• Environmental Taxation in the 2020s: Promises and Barriers, Xavier LABANDEIRA, University of Vigo [abstract] [slides]
• Voting and Information: Evidence from a Randomized Controlled Trial, Stefano CARATTINI, Georgia State University [abstract]
• Impacts of Carbon Pricing on Electricity Prices – The Case of the EU ETS, Mirjam KOSCH, PIK Potsdam [abstract] [slides]
• The Best Argument for Carbon pricing is not Economic Efficiency, but Rather that it Fosters Cooperation, Axel OCKENFELS, University of Cologne [abstract]

 

Tuesday 30 November

10:00-11:00 – Keynote Speech

• Emission Markets as Financial Markets, Estelle CANTILLON, Université Libre de Bruxelles and Toulouse School of Economics [abstract] [slides]

11:10-12:40 – Policy Session “Deepening international cooperation on emissions trading: possible reforms for integration”

Chaired by Jos DELBEKE, School of Transnational Governance – European University Institute

• Stefano VERDE, FSR Climate – European University Institute [slides]
• Michael PAHLE, PIK Potsdam [slides]
• Susanne DRÖGE, SWP Berlin
• Artur RUNGE-METZGER, Former Director at the European Commission

This policy session is organised under the framework of the project LIFE DICET – Deepening International Cooperation on Emissions Trading – cofinanced by the EU LIFE Programme of the European Commission.

14:00-16:00 – Session on Energy efficiency and renewables

• Capitalization of the French Energy Performance Certificate: Is There a Label Premium?, Anna CRETI, Université Paris Dauphine – PSL [abstract] [slides]
• Materials Scarcity and Recycling for the Energy Transition, Francesco RICCI, Université de Montpellier and CEE-M [abstract] [slides]
• Integrating Energy Needs for Adaptation in Mitigation Pathways, Enrica DE CIAN, Ca’ Foscari Unversity of Venice and CMCC [abstract] [slides]
• Data Centres and Energy Demand: Lessons for Loads in Net Zero, Michael POLLITT, University of Cambridge [abstract] [slides]

16:00-16:10 – Concluding remarks

• Simone BORGHESI, FSR Climate – European University Institute

The FSR Climate Annual Conference 2021 is organised with the support of EAERE.

Bio of the Keynote Speaker:

Estelle Cantillon is a Professor of economics at the Université Libre de Bruxelles, an associate member at the Toulouse School of Economics, a research fellow at CEPR (London) and an elected member of the Royal Academy of Arts and Sciences of Belgium. Her research lies at the boundary between market design and industrial organization. Her current research focuses on carbon emissions markets, the design of electricity wholesale markets and climate transition policies. She has published on auctions, procurement, competition between exchanges, and assignment problems.

She currently sits on the Board of Regents of the National Bank of Belgium, on the Economics Council of OXERA and is a member of the steering committee of Re-Bel (Rethinking Belgium) and the scientific council of the Brussels Region Institute for Statistics. At ULB, she is the academic director of the Sustainable Development teaching initiative.

Estelle holds a PhD in Economics from Harvard and has held faculty appointments at Yale University, Harvard Business School and the Harvard Kennedy School of Government.

 

Past editions of the FSR Climate Annual Conference:

FSR Climate Annual Conference 2020

FSR Climate Annual Conference 2019

FSR Climate Annual Conference 2018

FSR Climate Annual Conference 2017

FSR Climate Annual Conference 2016

FSR Climate Annual Conference 2015

Climate change litigation has gained an unprecedented growth in importance in the last five years, which high visibility reached by recent judgments such as Milieudefensie v. Shell case. Globally, the cumulative number of climate change-related cases has more than doubled since 2015. Just over 800 cases were filed between 1986 and 2014, while over 1,000 cases have been brought in the last six years. Who are the key players bringing these disputes into court? Who are the other parties who have figured as defendants – e.g., governments, energy companies? How different are the strategic litigation of these cases? And how courts around have decided them so far?

The FSR Insights of October has the honour of hosting the two leading legal scholars to speak about their solid research on climate change litigation from a quantitative perspective: Prof. dr. Michael Gerrard, Andrew Sabin Professor and Director of the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law at Columbia University, and Dr. Joana Setzer, Assistant Professorial Research Fellow at the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, London School of Economics. Their research centers have gained a worldwide knowing reputation for monitoring all the climate change litigations in numbers and, by doing so, identifying the strengths and weaknesses of the judicialization of the most pressing issue of current times – climate change.

Before joining the event, watch our pills:

Do you have any questions for our speakers?

You can now submit them in advance!

Hosts

Leonardo Meeus, FSR

Lucila de Almeida, FSR

 

Keynote speakers

Prof. Michael Gerrard, Andrew Sabin Professor and Director of the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law at Columbia University

Joana Setzer, Assistant Professorial Research Fellow at the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, London School of Economics

 

Discussants

Mario Pagano, EUI

Lucila de Almeida, FSR

 Watch the event recording:

References

[1] Joana Setzer and Catherine Higham, Global Trends in Climate Change Litigation: 2021 snapshot, July 2021

FSR Debates series

 

Based on an unwritten duty of care in Dutch tort law, a Dutch Court  has in May 2021  recognized that the oil and gas company Shell has an “obligation of result” to reduce CO₂ emissions resulting from the Shell group’s activities, and a “best-efforts obligation” to reduce emissions generated by its business relations, including suppliers and end-users.  While Shell was not yet found to be in violation of its reduction obligation, the Court held there was danger of “imminent breach” because it considered Shell’s climate policies insufficient. The court clarified that Shell’s responsibility exists independently of states’ abilities and/or willingness to fulfil their own human rights obligations.  Therefore, state action – or here the lack thereof did  not detract from Shell’s standalone obligations. Relying on IPCC reports and the Paris Agreement, the Dutch court observed a “widely endorsed consensus” that emissions must be reduced by net 45% by 2030 and to net zero by 2050, and this consensus applies globally and also to non-state actors.  Therefore, Shell – while not solely responsible – may be expected to do its part to achieve these so-called “reduction pathways”.

In the wake of recent rulings across Europe and globally, requiring governments to lower emissions, this latest decision marks the first time any court in the world has imposed a duty on an energy company to do its share to prevent dangerous climate change. The Dutch Court’s decision against Shell effectively extends to a private entity the principles established by the same court in 2015 in Urgenda – the first ever ruling ordering a government to set more ambitious climate target. Urgenda reverberated in significant climate rulings around the world, including Ireland, France, Germany and Belgium. On the same day as the decision against Shell, the Australian Federal Court recognized a governmental obligation to ensure children are not harmed by future coal projects. This decision was the first in the world to impose a direct duty of care on a government official to protect young people from the future impact of climate change.

The Shell decision’s wider implications within the broader momentum for climate change litigation and increasing judicial scrutiny over corporate behavior have already attracted commentary. But what are the implications for this type of ‘duty of care’ or ‘do no harm’ approach by the courts for energy regulators – should they too share a duty to prevent dangerous climate change? Do regulators too have standalone obligations – irrespective of what national governmental authorities do or do not do? How can energy regulators balance potentially competing concerns – for example to ensure climate change targets are reached while at the same time guaranteeing security of supply?

 

Draft Programme

Introduction to the Debate and Opening Presentations

14.00 – 14.05   Introduction to the Debate

14.05 – 14.15  The Dutch ruling in the Shell case and its potential implications for regulatory authorities | Leigh   Hancher, Florence School of Regulation

14.15 – 14.25   The Norwegian Supreme Court ruling on Norwegian oil and gas drilling and the ECHR follow up: Prof dr Henrik Bjornebye, University of Oslo and BAHR

Panel Discussion: Introductory Remarks, Polls and Comments

Moderator: Alberto Pototschnig | Florence School of Regulation

14.25 – 14.50   Introductory remarks from the panellists

Zsuzsanna Pató, RAP;

Jorge Vasconcelos, FSR;

Wil Webster, OGUK.

14.50 – 14.55   Polls

14.55 – 15.15   Comments on the outcome of the polls and Q&A from the audience

Panellists

15.20 – 15.30   Concluding remarks

Leigh Hancher | Florence School of Regulation and Tilburg University
Alberto Pototschnig | Florence School of Regulation

Since the last 3 years, Electric vehicles are booming around the world. In France 16% of the cars sold are Batteries Electric Cars and this situation raises new questions and requires exploring the economic consequences of this rapid diffusion for public policy, network developments and tariffs design.

This event organised by the International Association for Energy Economics and the Florence School of Regulation represents an opportunity to review Electromobility field experiments (By W. Kempton), Prospective Scenarios for 2030-2050 (by R. Lauvergne), Tariff Design for EVs (I. Freitas Gomes) and motorways electrification (Pierre de Firmas).

Read more

Moderators:

Yannick Perez, LGI- CentraleSupélec – University Paris-Saclay

Eric Hittinger, Golisano Institute for Sustainability at Rochester Institute of Technology

Speakers:

Willett Kempton (Center for Carbon-free Power Integration/ College of Earth, Ocean, and Environment/ University of Delaware)

Icaro Freitas Gomes (CentraleSupélec)

Remi Lauvergne (RTE / CentraleSupélec)

Pierre de Firmas (Enedis)