PURPOSE: to establish a common framework for the production of European statistics on natural gas and electricity prices.
LEGISLATIVE ACT: Regulation (EU) 2016/1952 of the European Parliament and of the Council on European statistics on natural gas and electricity prices and repealing Directive 2008/92/EC.
CONTENT: the Regulation establishes a common framework for the development, production and dissemination of comparable European statistics on natural gas and electricity prices for household and final non-household customers in the EU.
High-quality, comparable, up-to-date, reliable and harmonised data on natural gas and electricity prices charged to final customers are needed in order to draft energy union policy and monitor the Member States energy markets.
The collection of data on natural gas and electricity prices charged to final customers in the household sector has so far been carried out on the basis of a voluntary agreement.
Data sources, coverage and transmission: Member States shall compile data on natural gas and electricity prices, and their components and sub-components concerning network costs, taxes, fees, levies and charges, and on consumption volumes, in accordance with Annexes I and II. Data shall be sent to Eurostat on an annual or bi-annual basis.
Member States shall not be obliged to transmit data on natural gas prices for household customers if the consumption of natural gas in the household sector accounts for less than 1.5 % of national final energy consumption in the household sector.
Quality assurance: every three years, Member States shall provide Eurostat with a standard quality report on the data in accordance with the quality criteria laid down in Regulation (EC) No 223/2009 on European statistics. Eurostat shall assess the quality of the data provided and shall use that assessment and an analysis of the quality reports in order to prepare and publish a report on the quality of European statistics covered by this Regulation.
Derogations: based on a reasoned request from a Member State, the Commission should be entitled to grant derogations to that Member State in relation to specific obligations for which the application of this Regulation to the national statistical system of that Member State requires major adaptations or is likely to lead to a significant additional burden on respondents.
Directive 2008/92/EC is repealed with effect from 1 March 2017.
ENTRY INTO FORCE: 7.12.2016.