Sustainable Energy Law Notebook

The 29th European Energy Law Seminar (EELS) will be held in The Hague, The Netherlands, on 22-23 January 2018. The Seminar is a unique opportunity to review the latest EU energy law developments and discuss in detail legal developments, case law and practice in the field with colleagues from all over Europe. So, hold the date and see you in The Hague! On the programme : status of the Clean Energy legislative package, update on Brexit, REMIT implementation, review of EU case law, digitalisation from blockchain to data management and cyber security, energy aggregators, decommissioning and re-use of offshore installations, power-to-gas, energy storage, hydropower concessions, new gas market design. Full programme : http://www.never.nl/site/attachments/article/201/EELS%202018%20Programme%20.pdf Registration details : http://www.never.nl/site/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=60&filter_tag[0]=...

Building on the presentations held at the annual  European Energy Law Seminar taking place every January in The Hague (NL), this book reviews central energy law issues from a national, EU and international perspective. A must have! C. Banet and M. Roggenkamp (eds.), European Energy Law Report XI (Intersentia, 2017) This volume includes chapters on “EU Energy and Climate Law – Policy and Jurisprudence”, “Energy and Climate Treaty Developments”, “Energy Infrastructure Developments: Offshore Electricity Systems and Network Investments”, “Heat Supply Legislation in the EU” and “Security of Energy Supply and Safety”. Reference : ISBN 9781780684697

Just out, here is a new book on offshore wind regulation . The publication takes a comparative approach by reviewing applicable regulations and market conditions in 10 jurisdictions in Europe and Pacific Asia. It has been a honour to contribute to this publication by authoring two chapters, one on France (Chapter 3) and one on Norway (Chapter 5) . Reference: The Development of a Comprehensive Legal Framework for the Promotion of Offshore Wind Power , Anton Ming-Zhi Gao and Chien-Te Fan (eds.),  Kluwer Law International, 2017, ISBN 9789041183972. Website of the Publisher : https://lrus.wolterskluwer.com/store/product/the-development-of-a-comprehensive-legal-framework-for-the-promotion-of-offshore-wind-power/

On 31 October 2017 , I will have the pleasure to be part of a panel discussion on the topic of climate change litigation in Bergen . The event - free and open to all - is organised by the Centre on Law and Social Transformation of the University of Bergen. More information at : https://www.lawtransform.no/event/breakfast-seminar-suing-the-state-for-climate-change-and-holding-it-to-account/  

Last week we presented a joint paper on energy policy in France . The paper is part of the Research project REMIX and has been presented, in a preliminary version, at the European Consortium for Political Research (ECPR) in Oslo, on 7 September 2017. The draft version of the paper called "An EU-induced turn to a marked-based France RES governance" is available here . The paper is a multidisciplinary collaboration between law and political science. The final version of the paper will be available by the end of 2017. Authors : Catherine Banet, University of Oslo, Faculty of Law, and Jørgen Wettestad, Fridtjof Nansen Institute. More about the REMIX Project here .

Norway is used to ship traffic along its coasts, but the announced venue of this vessel has raised particular concerns. In the summer of 2018 , the floating nuclear power plant, Akademik Lomonosov , will sail along the Norwegian coasts, as part of its Journey from the Baltic Shipyard of St. Petersburg to Murmansk (where refueling will apparently take place). On 22 July 2017, the Norwegian government announced its satisfaction over the decision made by Rosatom (Russian state nuclear energy Corporation), the operator, that there will not be nuclear fuel on board when the plant will be transported along the coast of Norway (see press release). Even if projects for floating nuclear power plants - also called Transportable Nuclear Power Plants (TNPP) - were developed in the 1960s, the Akademik Lomonosov will be the first plant of its kind, and pave the way to a new international market segment as other countries have shown interest in ...

On 24 June 2017 , the French legal think tank Le Club des Juristes presented to the President of the French Republic the draft project of a Global Pact of the Environment drafted by a group of international environmental lawyers. The text is available for download in both French : http://www.leclubdesjuristes.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Avant-projet-de-Pacte-mondial-pour-lenvironnement-24-juin-2017.pdf and English : http://www.leclubdesjuristes.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Draft-project-of-the-Global-Pact-for-the-Environment-24-June-2017.pdf Source: Website of Le Club des Juristes http://www.leclubdesjuristes.com/projet-de-pacte-mondial-lenvironnement/  

De siste månedene har fokuset på det energipolitiske området vært rettet mot EUs vinterpakke fra november 2016. Imidlertid burde en annen vinterpakke, fra februar 2016, få like mye oppmerksomhet. Den andre pakken er også en del av EUs energiunionstrategi, den handler om solidaritet og forsyningssikkerhet, og er av direkte betydning for alle land som leverer olje, gass eller elektrisitet til EU. Den reiser prinsipielle spørsmål om utveksling av informasjon på energiområdet, energiimportstrategi og Kommisjonens kompetanse på området . ... Les resten av min kronikk på Energi og Klima Nettmagasinet: http://energiogklima.no/kommentar/eus-medlemsstater-gir-kommisjonen-innsyn-i-mellomstatlige-energiavtaler/

Marine Le Pen står for proteksjonisme og nasjonalisme også innen klima- og energipolitikken, mens Emmanuel Macrons prosjekt innebærer grønn vekst i en europeisk ramme. [...] Les hele min kronikk om klima- og energiprogrammet til de to finalekandidatene i Energi og Klima Nettmagasinet: http://energiogklima.no/kommentar/macron-vs-le-pen-hva-skjer-med-klima-og-energipolitikken/  

The Danish Energy Commission has just delivered its report on the future energy policy of the country ( " Energikommissionens anbefalinger til fremtidens energipolitik " , April 2017). The report comes with a series of recommendations which should enable the country to reach the long-term goal of becoming a low-emissions society based on renewable energy by 2050, with an intermediary 50% goal in 2030. The Commission received the mandate of looking at the measures necessary to be implemented in the period 2020-2030. It argues notably in favour of the following main points below. The summary is followed by a rapid assessment.

You can find below the reference to my latest publication :  "Effectiveness in Climate Regulation: Simultaneous Application of a Carbon Tax and an Emissions Trading Scheme to the Offshore Petroleum Sector in Norway" C. Banet in Carbon and Climate Law Review (2017) 11(1), pp.25-38 Accessible at: http://cclr.lexxion.eu/article/CCLR/2017/1/5 Summary : The present article discusses effectiveness in environmental regulation when two instruments, a carbon dioxide tax (CO2 tax) and an emissions trading scheme (ETS), are applied concomitantly to the same activity. The Norwegian regulation of the CO2 emissions from the upstream petroleum sector is taken as an example since it submits this sector to both the payment of a CO2 tax and the obligation to surrender emissions allowances under the EU ETS since Norway joined the scheme in 2008. The specific approach to this double regulation consists in adjusting the rate of the CO2 tax according to the price for the EU ...

The European Commission has announced on 7 April 2017 that it has opened an in-depth investigation into the German plans to establish a capacity mechanism in the form of an electricity capacity reserve . The investigation aims to establish whether the German proposal of an electricity capacity mechanism complies with EU state aid rules . Of particular relevance for the assessment are the  Guidelines on State aid rules for energye and environmental protection (2014-2020) (so-called EEAG). This in-depth investigation comes after the adoption, by the Commission of an EU Sector Inquiry, common assessment criteria in the EEAG and a series of decisions on capacity market mechanisms in several EU Member States (UK, France, Germany).

The European Commission has published a press release on 13 March 2017 inviting comments on the commitments submitted by Gazprom in the case opened in April 2015 and which relates to the alleged  anti-competitive behaviours on the Central and Eastern European gas markets .  

Malta has taken over the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union (EU) for the next six months (1 January-30 June 2017) . It is now time to take a look at its energy and environmental policy priorities, and what will be on its agenda until the summer. The programme of the Maltese presidency is based on both joint and more singular interests. A new system has been established after the 2009 Lisbon Treaty to run the presidency work in groups of three Member States or "trios" , covering a period of 18 months, complemented by a more detailed programme for the 6-month presidency of each Member State. This post reflects this dynamic, and starts with a rapid review of the Trio-programme, then a review of the Maltese presidency programme, before ending by a personal analysis .