Case C-226/16: Judgment of the Court (Fifth Chamber) of 20 December 2017 (request for a preliminary ruling from the Conseil d’État — France) — Eni SpA, Eni Gas & Power France SA, Union professionnelle des industries privées du gaz (Uprigaz) v Premier ministre, Ministre de l’Environnement, de l’Énergie et de la Mer (Reference for a preliminary ruling — Energy — Gas industry — Security of gas supply — Regulation (EU) No 994/2010 — Obligation of natural gas undertakings to take measures to safeguard the supply of gas to protected customers — Point 1 of the second paragraph of Article 2 — Definition of ‘protected customers’ — Article 8(2) — Additional obligation — Article 8(5) — Possibility for natural gas undertakings of fulfilling their obligation at regional level or at Union level — National legislation imposing on gas suppliers an additional gas storage obligation, the scope of which includes customers who are not protected customers within the meaning of Regulation No 994/2010 — Obligation to be fulfilled, as regards 80 % of the gas stored, on the territory of the Member State concerned)
Date: 2017-12-20
Institutions: Court of Justice
Subjects: consumer protection, gas industry, gas supply, security of supply, storage of hydrocarbons








C_2018072EN.01001001.xml










26.2.2018   


EN


Official Journal of the European Union


C 72/10





Judgment of the Court (Fifth Chamber) of 20 December 2017 (request for a preliminary ruling from the Conseil d’État — France) — Eni SpA, Eni Gas & Power France SA, Union professionnelle des industries privées du gaz (Uprigaz) v Premier ministre, Ministre de l’Environnement, de l’Énergie et de la Mer
(Case C-226/16) (1)

((Reference for a preliminary ruling - Energy - Gas industry - Security of gas supply - Regulation (EU) No 994/2010 - Obligation of natural gas undertakings to take measures to safeguard the supply of gas to protected customers - Point 1 of the second paragraph of Article 2 - Definition of ‘protected customers’ - Article 8(2) - Additional obligation - Article 8(5) - Possibility for natural gas undertakings of fulfilling their obligation at regional level or at Union level - National legislation imposing on gas suppliers an additional gas storage obligation, the scope of which includes customers who are not protected customers within the meaning of Regulation No 994/2010 - Obligation to be fulfilled, as regards 80 % of the gas stored, on the territory of the Member State concerned))
(2018/C 072/12)
Language of the case: French

Referring court

Conseil d’État

Parties to the main proceedings


Applicants: Eni SpA, Eni Gas & Power France SA, Union professionnelle des industries privées du gaz (Uprigaz)

Defendants: Premier ministre, Ministre de l’Environnement, de l’Énergie et de la Mer

Intervening parties: Storengy, Total Infrastructures Gaz France (TIGF)

Operative part of the judgment







1.


Article 8(2) of Regulation (EU) No 994/2010 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 October 2010 concerning measures to safeguard security of gas supply and repealing Council Directive 2004/67/EC must be interpreted as not precluding national legislation, such as that in the main proceedings, that imposes on natural gas suppliers a gas storage obligation, the scope of which includes customers who are not among the protected customers listed in point 1 of the second paragraph of Article 2 of that regulation, provided that the conditions set out in Article 8(2) of the regulation are complied with, a matter which it is for the referring court to ascertain.










2.


Article 8(5) of Regulation No 994/2010 must be interpreted as precluding national legislation that requires natural gas suppliers to comply with their obligations to hold gas stocks, in order to guarantee security of supply in the event of crisis, necessarily and exclusively through infrastructure located within the territory of the Member State. In the present case, it is however for the referring court to ascertain whether the power which the competent authority has under the national legislation to take account of the ‘other regulatory instruments’ available to the suppliers concerned ensures that it is actually possible for them to meet their obligations at regional level or at European Union level.






(1)  OJ C 251, 11.7.2016.