1^.10.91 Official]oumal of the European Communities NoC^9BB9 
Opiek^BOBn^ecoBunuBic^noBh^mn^eC 
^91BC^9B21^ 
On 19 ^larch 1991 the Economic and Social Committee, acting under the fourth paragraph 
ofArticle^Oofits Rules ofProcedure, decided todraw up an Opinion on the communication 
from the Commission onaEuropean Energy Charter. 
TheSectionforEnergy,NuclearQuestionsandResearch, which was responsibleforpreparing 
the Committee'sworlo on the subject, adopted its Opinion on ll]une 1991,inthe light of 
the report by ^IrCafoEemandez. 
At its 2^th plenary session ^meeting of^]ulyl991^ the Economic and Social Committee 
adopted the following Opinion byalarge majority with^ahstentions. 
1. mtroductioB 
1.1. The draft European Energy Charter should be 
seen against the background of the opening up of CenD 
tral and Eastern Europe, politically and economically, 
which began in the second half of 19^9. 
1.2. In June 199u the Toutch Prime minister submits 
ted on behalf of his governmentamemorandum^the 
^Lubbers Plan^, which proposed thatpotential syn^ 
ergies between the Community,the USSR and the Cen^ 
tralandEastemEuropeancountriesbee^ploitedby 
setting upaEuropean Energy Community. 
1.^. Thisinitiativewasendorsedbythef^ublinEuro^ 
peanCouncilofJune!990 and the Commission was 
instructed to carry out an indepth study. 
1.^. Commission President ^1^^ in turn presented 
the proposal to the metting of the Conference on Secure 
ity and Cooperation in Europe held in Paris in 
November 1990. The Conference supported and adopts 
ed his initiative. 
no. Einally, the Rome European Council of 
December 1990 gave the green light to an Intemanonal 
Conference to draw upaEuropean Energy Charter in 
thesecond half of 1991 
1.^. The draft Charter comprises three distinct levels 
of action. Eirst, the Energy Charter proper which will 
beacodeof conducts thesignatory countries w^llunder^ 
take to observe and enforce it. A series of specific 
protocols will branch out from this hub^ these will be 
subject tointernationallawand, as such,bindingon 
theparties. They will define exactly the rights and 
duties of the parties in respect of each of the sectors and 
areas to be determined. Einally,aseries of commercial 
agreements will bedrawn up by companies and organize 
ations, governed by the principles of the Charter and basedonthenghtsandobhganonsenshrinedinthe 
protocols. 
1.^. Other external events are influencing the pre^ 
paratory work for the mtemanonal Conference. Eirst, 
developments in Central and Eastern Europe which 
highlight the political and economic difficulties of these 
countries' transition to a system similar to the EC 
member States. 
l.D. Secondly, the Gulf Crisis and subsequent ^ar, 
which,whilst not causing real shortages, again high^ 
lighted the vulnerability of the Community's external 
energy supplies and the importance of its own energy 
resources, despite the major progress achieved over the 
last ten years, e.g. in diversifying supply sources. 
1.9. Thirdly, the interest shown by other indusD 
trialized countries in participating in the political and 
economic opening up of Central and Eastern Europe 
cannot be overlooked.These countries, together with 
theTwelve, have made major coordinated financial 
contributionsviathe^Croupof2^'.lnparallel,multilat^ 
eral organizations like the International Energy Agency 
and the ^orld Bank have also been active. 
1.10. The Community has also made significant proD 
gressonenergy.Theintemalenergymarketis beginning 
to materialize, and an integrated Communitywide 
energy sector is emerging slowly.Simultaneously the 
barriers betweenthe^emberStatesnational energy 
markets are beginning to disappear. 
1.11. Even more significant is the Rome European 
Council'sinstruct^on to the Intergovernmental Confers 
ence on Political Union to study the possibility of incor^ 
poratinganew energy chapter into the revisedTreaty 
of Rome.This constitutional support for the establish^ 
No C 269/80 Official Journal of the European Communities 14. 10. 91 
ment of a Community energy policy will be based on: 
1) a real internal market in energy, 2) security of supply 
at Community level and 3) complete integration with 
Community environmental policy. 
1.12. In the light of all these factors, the European 
Energy Charter has to be seen as an operation of 
exceptional political impact, having an economic and 
social input to reinforce and consolidate its political 
objectives in the best interests of consumers, and being 
based on balance and solidarity between all the Euro­
pean nations. 
2. General comments 
2.1. The Committee endorses the principles underly­
ing the Charter. The Charter can contribute to political 
cooperation and the development of economic relations 
between all the countries of Europe by exploiting the 
complementary features of Europe's various regions, 
such as the availability of energy reserves, technology 
and financial resources. 
2.2. The Committee also recognizes the Charter's 
objective of contributing to security of Community 
energy supplies under more satisfactory ecological and 
economic conditions, as well as its important potential 
contribution to the economic and social stability of the 
Central and Eastern European countries. 
2.3. However the Committee would like to highlight 
a number of aspects not specifically covered by the 
Charter which, if not given sufficient weight, could 
endanger its future effectiveness. 
2.4. The first concerns the balance between rights 
and obligations set out in the principles of the Charter. 
The aim must be not to impose a uniform economic 
model, but rather to respect, as far as possible, the 
specific characteristics of each country within the mar­
ket economy framework referred to in the Charter's 
recitals. This is all the more obvious given the current 
lack of such a framework in the Central and Eastern 
European nations which will make it difficult for them 
to secure the benefits of the Charter on an equal footing. 
2.5. In the same spirit, the Committee feels that 
producer countries' sovereignty over energy reserves 
located in their territory should be included in the 
principles of the Charter. 
2.6. Secondly, the Committee stresses that Title IV 
of the Charter should include a mechanism ensuring that the principles and provisions of the Charter are 
observed by the signatory countries. 
2.7. Thirdly, the Committee thinks that a study of 
the European energy sector up to the year 2010 is 
needed. The European Energy Charter's contribution 
to energy security in Europe could be assessed in the 
light of such European scenarios. 
2.8. Similarly, the Charter appears to approach the 
problem of guaranteeing energy availability purely in 
terms of security of supply. The ESC feels that in 
addition special emphasis should be given to the policy 
for the rational use of energy designed to embrace the 
whole of Europe, in which finance and the transfer of 
technology and experience would be key elements. The 
Committee regrets that such an initiative, whilst con­
templated in the principles of the Charter, is not 
developed sufficiently in its implementing actions; this 
is particularly unfortunate in view of the work the 
Commission is doing in this area in conjunction with 
the Central and Eastern European countries. 
2.9. The Committee feels that is should be invited 
to participate in the International Conference which 
draws up the European Energy Charter and at any 
periodic follow-up meetings. 
2.10. This new approach to energy supply may also 
have an impact on the Community's other commercial 
and political agreements, such as the Mediterranean 
agreements, the generalized system of preferences (GSP) 
or the negotiations for a free trade agreement with the 
Gulf Cooperation Council countries. 
2.11. The Committee also stresses the need to assess 
the impact of the Charter on the construction of the 
internal energy market. 
2.12. This impact will be of special relevance to the 
Community's peripheral countries, and even more so 
for ultra-peripheral regions, as economic and social 
cohesion, the counterweight to the internal market, 
could be threatened by the shift in the energy sector's 
centre of gravity towards Central and Northern Europe, 
i.e. the Member States with the highest level of develop­
ment, the best infratstructure, and the most diversified 
sources of energy supply. Such a shift and the resulting 
diversion of public and private-sector economic and 
technological resources could aggravate the Com­
munity's existing major regional imbalances. 
2.13. The Committee highlights the need for a num­
ber of detailed studies on the European Charter's poss-
14. 10. 91 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 269/81 
ible implications for the trade agreements, on its contri­
bution to completion of the internal energy market and 
on economic and social cohesion. 
2.14. The Charter's implications for consumers 
throughout Europe and its potential contribution to 
creating and stimulating employment should be 
assessed. 
2.15. The Committee also draws attention to the 
need to give greater weight to technology transfer and 
environmental protection. Although these are included 
in the Charter, they may be subordinated to more 
commercial factors such as exploitation of resources or 
trade liberalization. The Committee therefore feels that 
in drawing up safety and environmental standards for 
Charter projects, the Community rules in force at the 
time should be followed and that, as far as possible, a 
technology transfer element should be incorporated 
into essentially commercial agreements. 
In this context the signatory countries should study and 
implement the optimum solutions from the ecological 
point of view. 
2.16. Technology transfer is particularly important 
in relation to the safety of nuclear plants. The purpose 
of such activities, which should take priority, should 
be to enable existing installations in Central and Eastern 
Europe to be brought into line with Community safety 
standards. 
3. Specific comments on the draft European Energy 
Charter 
3.1. The Committee feels that the recitals should 
contain a specific reference to the need to exploit all 
means of contributing to the political and economic 
stability of Europe as a whole. 
3.2. The Committee feels that the concrete objectives 
of the Charter could be more explicit in regard to 
the benefits which the Central and Eastern European 
Countries may hope to gain the Charter's implemen­
tation. In this connection, it would be appropriate 
to list the pursuit of energy efficiency, environmental 
optimization and economic profitability as one of the 
Charter's main short and medium-term objectives. 
3.3. It would also be appropriate to include, as has 
already been done in the draft text on the environment, a reference to the need to cost the achievement of the 
Charter's objectives in respect of plant safety and the 
safe transport of energy and energy-related materials. 
3.4. The Committee therefore proposes the follow­
ing alternative drafting for the first paragraph of Title I: 
'With a view, on the one hand, to improving security 
of energy supply on the most satisfactory economic 
basis and, on the other, to improving the energy 
efficiency, environmental optimization and econ­
omic profitability of the exploitation of resources 
and energy infrastructure, whilst also improving the 
plant safety and respect for the environment, the 
signatories agree to promote the construction of a 
large European energy market.' 
3.5. The reference to 'infrastructure' in the final line 
of paragraph 1 of Titel I should make it clear that 
the term refers to the infrastructure needed for the 
development of the various energy processes, for the 
safety of installations or the protection of the environ­
ment in connection with activities undertaken under 
the Charter. 
3.6. The Committee feels that paragraph 2 of Title I 
should contain a reference to the need to harmonize 
progressively the laws on emissions of all kinds from 
energy installations. 
3.7. The Committee feels that the wording of para­
graph 3 of Title I should be more explicit and suggests 
that it be replaced by the following: 
'3. Optimum use of energy and environmental pro­
tection which will require that: 
— the necessary investments be made and that in 
each case the best available technology be used 
to achieve a radical improvement in the energy 
efficiency and ecological aspect of the various 
energy production and transport processes, 
— the use of new and renewable energy sources be 
encouraged, especially in areas lacking other 
energy resources, 
— installations be designed for minimum environ­
mental impact.' 
3.8. Paragraph 4 of Title II makes reference to the 
setting-up of main international transmission grids, 
their interconnection and their opening-up to users. 
The Committee assumes that in so doing the signatories 
mean to improve conditions for the development of 
international grids and to promote cross-border cooper­
ation in line with the stage reached in setting up the 
internal energy market. 
At all events, in implementing the Charter, account 
should be taken of subsequent advances in this field. 
No C 269/82 Official Journal of the European Communities 14. 10. 91 
The Committee will have to comment on such advances 
at the appropriate time. 
3.9. On the subject of technical specifications and 
safety standards, a standards body could be set up 
common to all the signatory countries based on the 
'new approach' of laying down only essential require­
ments via Community Directives which are then incor­
porated in national legislation. There would be no 
obstacle to such a common standards body coordinat­
ing its work with that of the European Committee for 
Standardization (CEN), the European Committee for 
Electrotechnical Standardization (Cenelec) and the 
European Telecommunication Standards Institute 
(ETSI). The Commission should monitor this process 
in order to ensure maximum economy and efficiency. 
3.10. Title III lists subjects for possible future specific 
agreements and mentions the aspects for inclusion in 
each of the agreements. 
Done at Brussels, 4 July 1991. In order to bring the specific agreements more closely 
into line with the principles underlying the Charter, the 
Committee feels that each agreement drafted in the 
future should include chapters covering the following 
subjects: 
— the agreement's impact on the energy efficiency of 
the plants concerned, 
— environmental impact, 
— criteria for harmonizing the relevant specific pro­
visions. 
3.11. Finally, the Committee agrees that the Com­
mission should provisionally provide secretarial back­
up for the European Charter, as this is the most econ­
omical and efficient way to get the secretariat up and 
running, provided that this is a genuinely transitional 
arrangement with a specific time limit. 
The Chairman 
of the Economic and Social Committee 
Francois STAEDELIN