Media Partnership Dufresne Private Lt
The
European Commission plans to launch a probe this Wednesday into Germany Brussels
The
European Commission plans to open proceedings on Wednesday against Germany
Under
the law, German electricity users pay a charge that goes towards funding
renewable energy generation. Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia believes
that exemptions granted to some energy-intensive German companies from those
charges run counter to EU law
The
Commission plans to launch proceedings aimed not only at banning such
exemptions in the future, but also requiring companies to repay the charges
they were exempted from in the past
Energy
Commissioner Günther Oettinger even called the entire renewable energy law into
question in remarks to a conference hosted by German energy company E.on last
week
Too
Many Exemptions
Oettinger
said many provisions in the law appeared to be in breach of EU single market
rules and competition law. For example, he said, it wasn't acceptable that
Germay subsidizes its own wind power but makes no subsidies available to
operators from Denmark and Norway that deliver windpower to Germany
Some
4,500 companies have so far applied to be exempted from the renewable energy
charge. The German Economy Ministry, responding to a written question from the
opposition Greens, confirmed that even golf clubs have largely been freed from
paying the charge
On
Sunday, Chancellor Angela Merkel said Brussels
The charges have financed large incentives to renewable energy
providers, triggering a boom in green power production. But they have also
driven up the cost of electricity for users who have to pay the charge.
"We
urgently need an amendment to the renewable energy law,"
Merkel told ARD television
ليست هناك تعليقات:
إرسال تعليق