Online Newsletter
Sign up for our newsletter to receive the latest news and information from publics.bg

News

From Bulgaria

25.01.2013 11:09

Bulgaria, Estonia and UK Taken to Court by the EC

For Bulgaria, the Commission proposes a daily penalty payment of EUR 8,448 for each of the two partially transposed directives

AUTHOR: publics.bg

© European Parliament

The European Commission decided, on 24 January, to refer Bulgaria, Estonia and the United Kingdom to the EU Court of Justice, raising to six the number of member states taken to court over incomplete transposition of EU rules on the internal energy market (third energy package). As it did with Slovenia, Poland and Finland, the Commission faults these three states with failing to fully transpose the electricity and gas directives. The member states were required to transpose the two texts no later than 3 March 2011, europolitics.info wrote.

For Bulgaria, the Commission proposes a daily penalty payment of EUR 8,448 for each of the two partially transposed directives. For Estonia, the proposed penalty is EUR 5,068.80 for partial transposition of the electricity directive and EUR 4,224 for the gas directive. For the UK, the Commission asks the court to impose a daily penalty of EUR 148,177.92 for each of the two partially transposed directives. The penalties proposed, notes the Commission, take account of the duration and gravity of the infringements. If the court rules affirmatively, the penalties will have to be paid from the date of the judgement and until transposition has been completed. The court will decide the final amount.

Last October, the Commission lodged actions against Poland and Slovenia before the EU Court of Justice for incomplete transposition of the electricity directive in the case of Poland and incomplete transposition of both directives by Slovenia. The Commission proposed penalties of EUR 84,378.24 for Poland and EUR 10,287.36 for Slovenia. A month later, the EU executive lodged another action against Poland for incomplete transposition of the second directive and proposed a daily penalty of EUR 88,819.20. Finland also came into the Commission’s sights for failure to transpose the two directives completely. The executive proposed a daily penalty payment of EUR 32,140.80.