Secretariat intervenes in discussion related to gas network code on Romania-Ukraine border

In a letter sent to the Romanian regulatory authority today, the Secretariat warns that the draft amendments to the gas transmission network code published for public consultation by the Romanian regulator could result is a situation whereby the allocation of capacity on the border with Ukraine would not be performed in line with the Network Code on Capacity Allocation Mechanisms.

At present, EU Member States are not legally obliged to apply network code rules on interconnection points that border the Energy Community Contracting Parties. The legal gap is expected to be resolved by amendments to the Energy Community Treaty. However, the national regulatory authorities of Bulgaria, Greece, Hungary, Poland and Romania chose to proceed with early voluntary implementation and signed, in January 2017, a general unilateral declaration on the applicability of all Third Energy Package gas network codes on interconnections with Contracting Parties.

By signing his declaration, the Romanian regulator declared that it will respect the application of gas networks codes and guidelines on the interconnection points with the Contracting Parties, once the Secretariat has been notified by the Contracting Party of its transposition. In this case, Ukraine has transposed and implemented the concerned network code and has notified the Secretariat of this fact. Thus, all conditions for the code to be applied by the Romanian side have been met.