Regulating and supervising of wholesale energy markets:What's in it for the consumers?

This paper draws on the case law of the European Court of Justice to examine the current (im)possibilities of dealing with the supervision and regulation of the competition in the wholesale energy markets within the three different European regulatory frameworks, namely the Third Energy Package, REMIT and EU competition law. It contains a critical analysis of the potential of this complex interplay of rules- in itself a burden for the national energy authorities- to contribute to the key objective of the Third Energy Package’s directives and regulations: the protection of energy consumers when concluding energy supply contracts

Principles of good supervision and The Regulation of the Dutch Drinking Water Sector

In March 2014, the OECD issued a report in which it indicated that the Netherlands “has an excellent track record on water management in several areas”. The OECD mentions for example that the Netherlands has developed a “strong economy and robust water industry”, this despite that 55% of the Netherlands’ territory is below sea level. However, the OECD also concluded that Dutch water governance “relies on a system of many checks and balances … [and] that system presents some limitations.” In response to the conclusion of the OECD, this article discusses the current framework of economic regulation of the Dutch drinking water sector. The article develops a normative framework to assess whether the current organisation of economic regulation is adequate. The assessment examines to which extent the principles of good regulation are observed by economic regulation of the drinking water sector. It is concluded that the Dutch framework of economic regulation of the drinking water sector displays several weaknesses in light of the principles of good regulation. In particular, the principles of transparency and independency need better observance. As a result the protection of the interests of the users of drinking water is at stake. This article ends with some recommendations to enhance the quality of economic regulation of the Dutch drinking water sector

The energy transition:Democracy, justice and good regulation of the heat market

This paper discusses whether the concepts of energy democracy, energy justice and the principles of good market regulation could play a role in developing a more consistent approach towards the regulation of the energy sector. It is concluded that the principles of good regulation can provide a useful framework within which advantages and disadvantages can be weighed of regulatory choices to be made when modernizing the regulation of the energy markets. A case study of the Dutch heat market is used as an example, showing that a lot remains to be gained in terms of flexible regulation and supervision and the facilitation of citizen participation. Both energy democracy and energy justice call for this. The lack of flexibility in the current regulatory framework could lead to ineffective and disproportionate regulation, hindering a sustainable, reliable and affordable development of the heat market. A larger need for flexibility is justified because of the differences between the types of heat networks. Customized solutions regarding unbundling and third-party access, including the modernization of the heat market, also require sufficient discretionary powers for the independent regulator that do not hinder but in fact stimulate the development of the heat market. Furthermore, increased citizen-participation is important in light of energy justice and energy democracy, which are energy specific concepts that overarch the principles of good regulation in the energy sector. Both concepts are based on the awareness that the energy transition is a matter for all citizens of the European Union and should not be ignored by policymakers and independent regulators. Since it is likely that most heat consumers will remain locked in for a relatively long time in natural monopolies facilitated by older generation heat networks and a lack of alternatives, substantive citizen-participation could yield positive results regarding community engagement in heat network management and heat suppl