You should subscribe to the ACER's newsletter p.d.q. In the new regulatory environment this ACER's leaflet seems more important than the EU Official Journal. Need an example?
Let's start with a few facts.
The story begins in July 2019 when the ACER published two important documents:
- an updated version of the 4th Edition of its Guidance on the application of REMIT, and
- Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) on REMIT fundamental data and inside information collection, 6th Edition.
In the former document in Sections 7.1 and 7.2 ACER introduced the new requirement for the inside information under REMIT to be disclosed using an inside information platform (IIP) or transparency platform.
In the latter, in the answer to the question 4.1.17. ACER said the EU energy market participants should fully comply with the new publication requirements as of 1 July 2020.
This sounds innocent but it isn't - before the said date the publication of inside information under REMIT took place mainly on market participants' websites - new obligation involves an entirely new organisational set-up.
Later on the ACER's newsletter appears (on 18 May 2020) where the respective compliance date has been extended from 30 June 2020 to 1 January 2021.
Ok, 3 months left before the deadline, prudent market participants willing to observe (the law?) search for compliant platforms and what they find?
As follows from the relevant ACER’s website as visited on 28 September 2020 (List of Inside Information and Transparency Platforms), no platform passed all Agency’s tests.
The most advanced ones were under the second stage evaluation.
Here is the IIP list as it was presented on the ACER's website on 28 September 2020.
No. |
Name of the platform |
EL |
NG |
Status of application |
1. |
Central European Gas Hub AG |
yes |
yes |
1st phase completed 2nd phase under evaluation |
2. |
European Energy Exchange AG |
yes |
yes |
1st phase completed 2nd phase under evaluation |
3. |
ELEXON Ltd |
yes |
no |
under evaluation, 1st phase |
4. |
Energinet Elsystemansvar A/S |
yes |
no |
under evaluation, 1st phase |
5. |
ENTSOG - European Network of Transmission System Operators for Gas |
no |
yes |
1st phase completed 2nd phase under evaluation |
6. |
Gas Transmission Operator GAZ-SYSTEM S.A. |
no |
yes |
1st phase completed 2nd phase under evaluation |
7. |
Gestore dei Mercati Energetici S.p.A. |
yes |
yes |
1st phase completed 2nd phase under evaluation |
8. |
Hungarian Power Exchange |
yes |
yes |
1st phase completed 2nd phase under evaluation |
9. |
JAO |
yes |
no |
under evaluation, 1st phase |
10. |
Nord Pool AS |
yes |
no |
under evaluation, 1st phase |
11. |
PRISMA European Capacity Platform GmbH |
no |
yes |
under evaluation, 1st phase |
12. |
REN, Redes Energéticas Nacionais, SA |
yes |
no |
under evaluation, 1st phase |
13. |
RTE Réseau de Transport d'Electricité |
yes |
no |
under evaluation, 1st phase |
14. |
SEEBURGER AG |
yes |
yes |
1st phase completed 2nd phase under evaluation |
15. |
Solien, s.r.o. |
yes |
yes |
1st phase completed 2nd phase under evaluation |
16. |
Towarowa Giełda Energii S.A. |
yes |
no |
under evaluation, 1st phase |
17. |
UAB GET Baltic |
no |
yes |
1st phase completed 2nd phase under evaluation |
18. |
Webware Internet Solutions GmbH |
yes |
yes |
1st phase completed 2nd phase under evaluation |
As visited on 4 October 2020 only the Gestore dei Mercati Energetici S.p.A. has been assigned ACER's annotation "IIP assessment successfully completed".
In turn, EEX on its transparency website mentions the platform complies with the ACER's requirements, while in fact, as follows from the above ACER's table, it is undergoing a second phase evaluation.
As regards the evaluation phases, on its website ACER explains:
“The registration of IIPs takes place in two phases. During the first phase, the Agency assesses both the applications submitted by IIPs and the IIPs’ websites for the disclosure of inside information, in order to verify compliance with the following seven requirements
(1) public disclosure on a non-discriminatory basis and public accessibility free of charge
(2) public disclosure by means of web feeds,
(3) record keeping and availability for public,
(4) language of publication,
(5) minimal availability,
(6) administrative arrangements to prevent conflicts of interest with market participants, and
(7) reporting of inside information in line with the Manual of Procedures on data reporting.
During the second phase, the Agency assesses the collection of inside information via web feeds, namely the reliability of the web feed(s) and the disclosure of inside information on the IIP website vs. via the web feed, according to the Manual of Procedures on data reporting.”
What is all about? It's about how the law shouldn't be enacted: lacking promulgation, lacking sufficient vacatio legis and lacking ACER newsletter's subscribers.