Spain: EC urges Spain to act on Energy monopolies

The EU’s competition authorities have forged ahead with their condemnation of competition in Spain’s energy sector, started in 2013 with a document that harshly criticises the existence of important monopolies controlling international grid connections for electricity and natural gas. Two companies, REE and Enagás, respectively, control these lucrative niche services. The EC has now issued a Statement of Motivation, restating their initial findings and urging Spain to change the existing regulations in order to fall in line with EU practice.

The Commission has concluded that current Spanish law prevents companies other than the existing service providers in gas an electricity from building or bidding for international interconnection services. Opening up this market would likely require reforms to Spain’s Electricity and Hydrocarbons laws.

Although the EC only mentions international connections, the change would “spread through the system”, according to experts. The EC’s directives state that interconnections must be exploited by authorized service providers (TSO), implying that should another company obtain the title, they will be able to participate in bidding for the Spanish domestic network.

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