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National Support Schemes for ‘Green Electricity’ and EU Law - A study of geographically limited support schemes for green electricity, EU secondary law and the Treaty provisions on the free movement of goods and environmental protection

Haglund, Linnea LU (2015) JURM02 20151
Department of Law
Abstract
Since the early days of the European project the economic rationale of integration has been confronted by public interests such as concerns for the environment. This tension has been tangible particularly in the relationship between national measures aimed at protecting the environment and the general rules governing the internal market. Over time environmental protection and sustainability have become integral parts of the Treaties governing the European Union, manifesting their importance in the legal framework. The same can be said of the promotion of renewable energy and the combat against climate change, which the EU is at the forefront of.
The legal development and the case law of the Court of Justice in this field has been... (More)
Since the early days of the European project the economic rationale of integration has been confronted by public interests such as concerns for the environment. This tension has been tangible particularly in the relationship between national measures aimed at protecting the environment and the general rules governing the internal market. Over time environmental protection and sustainability have become integral parts of the Treaties governing the European Union, manifesting their importance in the legal framework. The same can be said of the promotion of renewable energy and the combat against climate change, which the EU is at the forefront of.
The legal development and the case law of the Court of Justice in this field has been described and analysed by scholars and in studies of the relationship between environmental protection and general EU law, particularly, the free movement of goods, the case PreussenElektra (C-379/98, EU:C:2001:160) stands out since it concerns not only the interest of environmental protection versus the free movement of goods but also the energy policy of a Member State, the energy market in the EU and the implementation of international agreements on climate action, to which both the EU and its member states are signatories to.
This thesis aims to examine the compatibility of territorially limited national support schemes for green electricity production with the EU law focusing on the applicable secondary legislation and the free movement on goods. It explores the changes EU primary and secondary law has undergone and whether the special features of the electricity market, identified by the Court in the landmark case PreussenElektra are still applicable today. Following the development of the electricity market in general and harmonisation of the promotion of renewable electricity in particular, the relationship between the more general question of the connection between protection of the environment and the free movement of goods is examined. It also provides for a critical analysis of the judgment on the Court of Justice in the recently decided cases Ålands Vindkraft (C-573/12, EU:C:2014:2037) and EssentBelgium (C-204/12 till C-208/12, EU:C:2014:2192). It thereby investigates the general relationship between the objectives of free movement of goods and environmental protection and discusses the secondary legislation regulating support for renewable energy, notably the RES Directive and the case law of the Court of Justice interpreting the relevant legal provisions.
The study concludes that territorially limited national support schemes for the use of renewable energy sources in electricity production, using market-based instrument such as tradable certificates, are compatible with and even promoted by the applicable secondary legislation, notably the RES Directive (2009/28/EC). Such measures are also, in principle compatible with the free movement of goods, provided that no features of those schemes go beyond what is necessary in order to attain the legitimate objective: the promotion of increased use of renewables in the production of electricity. (Less)
Abstract (Swedish)
Sedan det europeiska projektets tidiga dagar har de underliggande ekonomiska motiven för integrationen konfronterats med allmänna intressen såsom oro för miljön. Denna spänning har varit påtaglig, i synnerhet förhållandet mellan nationella åtgärder som syftar till att skydda miljön och allmänna bestämmelser som reglerar EU:s inre marknad. Med tiden har miljöskydd och hållbar utveckling blivit integrerade i EU-fördragen, vilket manifesterar deras betydelse i det europeiska regelverket. Detsamma gäller främjande av förnybara energikällor och kampen mot klimatförändringar, orsakade av växthusgaser, som EU går i bräschen för.
Den rättsliga utvecklingen och rättspraxis från EU-domstolen på detta område har beskrivits och analyserats av... (More)
Sedan det europeiska projektets tidiga dagar har de underliggande ekonomiska motiven för integrationen konfronterats med allmänna intressen såsom oro för miljön. Denna spänning har varit påtaglig, i synnerhet förhållandet mellan nationella åtgärder som syftar till att skydda miljön och allmänna bestämmelser som reglerar EU:s inre marknad. Med tiden har miljöskydd och hållbar utveckling blivit integrerade i EU-fördragen, vilket manifesterar deras betydelse i det europeiska regelverket. Detsamma gäller främjande av förnybara energikällor och kampen mot klimatförändringar, orsakade av växthusgaser, som EU går i bräschen för.
Den rättsliga utvecklingen och rättspraxis från EU-domstolen på detta område har beskrivits och analyserats av forskare och i studier av förhållandet mellan miljöskydd och allmänna EU-bestämmelser, särskilt den fria rörligheten för varor (Artikel 34 FEUF), sticker fallet PreussenElektra (C-379/98, EU:C:2001:160) ut eftersom detta fall inte bara behandlar frågan om miljöskydd i förhållande till den fria rörligheten för varor, utan även energipolitiken i en medlemsstat; energimarknaden i EU och genomförandet av internationella avtal om klimatåtgärder, som både EU och dess medlemsstater har undertecknat.
Denna uppsats syftar till att undersöka huruvida geografiskt begränsade nationella stödsystem för grön elproduktion är förenliga med EU-rätten, särskilt den tillämpliga sekundärlagstiftning och den fria rörligheten för varor. Uppsatsen utforskar de förändringar som den europeiska primär- och sekundärrätten har genomgått och om elmarknadens särdrag, som EU-domstolen identifierade i det klassiska rättsfallet PreussenElektra, fortfarande gäller i dag. Utvecklingen av elmarknaden i allmänhet och harmonisering av regler gällande främjandet av förnybar el i synnerhet, granskas liksom den mer allmänna frågan om förhållandet mellan miljöskydd och den fria rörligheten för varor. Framställningen ger också en kritisk analys av domarna i de nyligen beslutade målen Ålands Vindkraft (C-573/12, EU:C:2014:2037) och Essent Belgium (C-204/12 till C-208/12, EU:C:2014:2192). Därmed undersöks det allmänna förhållandet mellan fri rörlighet för varor och miljöskydd samt sekundärlagstiftning som reglerar stöd till förnybar energi, särskilt direktivet om främjande av användningen av energi från förnybara energikällor, och den rättspraxis från EU-domstolen som tolkar de relevanta rättsliga bestämmelserna.
I studien dras slutsatsen att territoriellt begränsade nationella stödsystem för användningen av förnybara energikällor i elproduktion, med hjälp av marknadsbaserade instrument som överlåtbara certifikat, är förenliga med, och främjas till och med av, den tillämpliga sekundärlagstiftningen, i synnerhet Förnybartdirektivet (2009/28/EG). Sådana åtgärder är också i princip förenliga med den fria rörligheten för varor, förutsatt att inga egenskaper hos dessa system går utöver vad som är nödvändigt för att uppnå det legitima målet: att främja ökad användning av förnybar energi i elproduktionen. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Haglund, Linnea LU
supervisor
organization
course
JURM02 20151
year
type
H3 - Professional qualifications (4 Years - )
subject
keywords
EU law, environmental law, energy law, free movement of goods, environmental protection, renewable energy sources, internal electricity market, national support schemes, certificates of origin, EU renewable energy policies, green electricity
language
English
id
5434812
date added to LUP
2015-06-16 17:00:12
date last changed
2015-06-16 17:00:12
@misc{5434812,
  abstract     = {{Since the early days of the European project the economic rationale of integration has been confronted by public interests such as concerns for the environment. This tension has been tangible particularly in the relationship between national measures aimed at protecting the environment and the general rules governing the internal market. Over time environmental protection and sustainability have become integral parts of the Treaties governing the European Union, manifesting their importance in the legal framework. The same can be said of the promotion of renewable energy and the combat against climate change, which the EU is at the forefront of.
The legal development and the case law of the Court of Justice in this field has been described and analysed by scholars and in studies of the relationship between environmental protection and general EU law, particularly, the free movement of goods, the case PreussenElektra (C-379/98, EU:C:2001:160) stands out since it concerns not only the interest of environmental protection versus the free movement of goods but also the energy policy of a Member State, the energy market in the EU and the implementation of international agreements on climate action, to which both the EU and its member states are signatories to. 
This thesis aims to examine the compatibility of territorially limited national support schemes for green electricity production with the EU law focusing on the applicable secondary legislation and the free movement on goods. It explores the changes EU primary and secondary law has undergone and whether the special features of the electricity market, identified by the Court in the landmark case PreussenElektra are still applicable today. Following the development of the electricity market in general and harmonisation of the promotion of renewable electricity in particular, the relationship between the more general question of the connection between protection of the environment and the free movement of goods is examined. It also provides for a critical analysis of the judgment on the Court of Justice in the recently decided cases Ålands Vindkraft (C-573/12, EU:C:2014:2037) and EssentBelgium (C-204/12 till C-208/12, EU:C:2014:2192). It thereby investigates the general relationship between the objectives of free movement of goods and environmental protection and discusses the secondary legislation regulating support for renewable energy, notably the RES Directive and the case law of the Court of Justice interpreting the relevant legal provisions. 
The study concludes that territorially limited national support schemes for the use of renewable energy sources in electricity production, using market-based instrument such as tradable certificates, are compatible with and even promoted by the applicable secondary legislation, notably the RES Directive (2009/28/EC). Such measures are also, in principle compatible with the free movement of goods, provided that no features of those schemes go beyond what is necessary in order to attain the legitimate objective: the promotion of increased use of renewables in the production of electricity.}},
  author       = {{Haglund, Linnea}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{National Support Schemes for ‘Green Electricity’ and EU Law - A study of geographically limited support schemes for green electricity, EU secondary law and the Treaty provisions on the free movement of goods and environmental protection}},
  year         = {{2015}},
}