In a frontier-free Europe, public utilities must operate in the single market. The quicker they adapt to the European single market, the better for them. A European Union Member State declares its market open to other Member States, but only to the extent that they open up their markets. The argument is all the more dangerous because it seems self-evident. It leads inevitably to a form of 'bilateralism' between Member States, and ultimately to the fragmentation of the single market.
Reciprocity quickly becomes an indirect way of stopping liberalisation.
That would be deadly. The same rules for everyone What is unique about the single market is that it is the integrated market of a Union. The rules are the same for everyone, and the European Commission ensures that they are respected. Reciprocity cannot easily be reconciled with European law because it goes against the principle of non-discrimination embodied in the Treaty establishing the European Community. All forms of reciprocity must invariably be sanctioned and carefully conditioned by European lawmakers, as has been done through the electricity directive.