The government wants to adopt a draft regulation that would protect sensitive electricity consumers and ensure uninterrupted electricity supplies, especially in winter, according to the list of legislative and program works of the Council of Ministers.
The adoption by the Council of Ministers of the draft amendment to the energy law in this regard is planned for the fourth quarter.
The proposed changes result from the need to implement Directive 2019/944 of 5 June 2019 on common rules for the internal market in electricity. It requires Member States to draft legislation on vulnerable consumers and energy poverty.
Introducing changes in this area will help to protect the weakest group of end users, alleviating the effects of their unfavorable economic and financial situation, while ensuring continuity of supplies.
The project is to include regulations regarding, among others:
1) changing the definition of a sensitive recipient by expanding the circle of these recipients,
2) changes in the criteria, amount and procedure for granting the energy allowance,
3) strengthening the protection of recipients with non-financial activities, including:
– the introduction of a ban on the suspension of supplies in the event that a sensitive consumer of electricity has arrears in payments for electricity in the so-called winter months,
– ensuring that a sensitive energy consumer and a sensitive consumer of gaseous fuels may request the seller to apply the program,
– protecting people under long-term care at home against the suspension of electricity supply due to chronic respiratory failure,
4) introduction of a general definition of energy poverty, which leaves the possibility of clarifying and narrowing the definition criteria for individual support or poverty reduction programs in the future, depending on the purpose of their application.
The planned regulations will modify the limits of electricity consumption in households by changing them and adding a new limit for households consisting of 6 people and more. This change is aimed at better targeting the aid and providing greater protection to families with many children, more often in a more difficult material and living situation.
Source: ISBnews
