WRITTEN QUESTION E-1653/99

by Alexandros Alavanos (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(22 September 1999)

Subject: New insurance scheme set up by Greek Electricity Board (DEI)

According to press reports, the agreement between the Greek Government and the DEI trade unions designed to resolve their insurance problem which has already been publicised has provoked opposition from the Commission which considers that the arrangements for the DEI's new insurance scheme constitute government aid. According to the same reports, the Commission considers that the insurance scheme is related to the opening-up of the energy market in Greece.

1. Does the Commission consider that the arrangements made for the DEI insurance scheme, whereby the assets of the insurance organisation are transferred in return for cover via the national budget, constitutes government aid?

2. Is it the Commission's intention that the timetable for opening up the domestic energy market in Greece in 2001 should be the same as for all the Member States or will it be 28 %, as applied to the other Member States except Greece in February 1999?

Answer given by Mrs de Palacio on behalf of the Commission

(27 October 1999)

1. The Commission has not received any notification from the Greek government on the agreement between the Greek government and the Greek Electricity Board (DEI). Therefore, the Commission has made no declaration with respect to the arrangements in question. At present, it is not therefore possible to say whether these arrangements constitute a state aid within the meaning of Article 87 of the EC Treaty (ex-Article 92). The Commission intends to address a request for information to the Greek government.

2. The Member States had the obligation to implement the provisions of Directive 96/0092/EC of the Parliament and of the Council of 19 December 1996 concerning common rules for the internal market in electricity(1), on 19 February 1999. However, Belgium and Ireland were given one additional year to implement the Directive, while Greece had two extra years to adopt the implementing legislation.

The Directive in its Article 19 provides for an opening of the market in three steps. The share of the national market will be increased progressively over a period of six years. The minimum market opening corresponding to the first step is calculated as the share of the total Community electricity consumption by final consumers with an annual consumption exceeding 40 gigawatt hours (GWh). Following the latest calculation this implies that a minimum of 26,48 % of each national market had to be open for competition since 19 February 1999. In the second step three years after entry into force of the Directive the threshold is reduced to a level of 20 GWh. This increases the minimum market opening to approximately 28 %. In the third step six years after entry into force of the Directive -the threshold is further reduced to 9 GWh which equals a market opening of some 33 %.

In the event that Greece uses the full two-year grace period, it will have to liberalise its share electricity consumption which corresponds with the second step, which applies three years after the entry into force of the Directive, i.e. 19 February 2000. In 2003 it will have to liberalise its share of total electricity consumption consumed by final consumers with an annual consumption exceeding 9 GWh, based on the Community average.

(1) OJ L 27, 30.1.1997.