State of implementation 2022
Our efforts to overcome the crisis, to reconstruct and to eventually win the future will need to rely on what continues to be the backbone of the Energy Community: full implementation of the European acquis communautaire. As every year, the present report highlights the successes and failures in the endeavours by Contracting Parties. Those countries most severely affected by the war and energy blackmailing have developed well. Despite the struggle for survival and the Russian atrocities, Ukraine managed to keep its market model in electricity largely intact, and provided assurances that the emergency measures taken in the gas sector will be phased out quickly once the war is over. Moldova in particular developed a new dynamism in taking steps towards market reforms and integration which have been almost unthinkable a year ago.
As a response to the surge in electricity import prices, other countries prioritized stabilization measures, and are yet to take the decisive steps which will allow them to yield the full benefits of domestic reforms. In Albania, Georgia, Kosovo*, Montenegro and North Macedonia further steps towards the establishment of spot markets in electricity have been made but are yet to materialize. Serbia still needs to liberalize its gas sector whereas North Macedonia made progress in the better usage of its interconnector with Bulgaria. The development in Bosnia and Herzegovina remains stalled. The implementation of environmental law, both in terms of pollution standards and in the quality of permitting procedures remains a concern as reflected in a number of infringement procedures. At the same time, all Contracting Parties progress in the transposition of the Clean Energy Package, in particular the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Directives. Auctions for market-based renewable energy support progressed in Albania as well as North Macedonia.
The reporting year 2022, the most challenging so far in the history of the Energy Community, turned out to be a true turning point for the energy sectors of its Contracting Parties. The organization is adapting to this challenge and will have to adapt further. Granting EU candidacy status to Ukraine and Moldova and clear recommendation by the European Commission to grant this status to Bosnia and Herzegovina brings the Energy Community to the heart of the enlargement process. Its values and principles, such as the integration in the European Green Deal, functioning markets as the best available instrument for allocating scarce resources, social fairness as well as enhanced cooperation for the sake of regional and pan-European resilience, remain more relevant than ever. In translating them into tangible results, the Energy Community moves to the next level.
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Browse the diverse Contracting Party pages and benchmark their 2022 implementation performance, including key energy sector data. Get more details on the applied methodology, review the Secretariat's past reports and/or Compliance Notes.