ACER publishes its Opinions on requests from seven national regulatory authorities on derogations from applying EU gas network codes and guidelines at interconnection points with third countries.
These requests have been submitted by the energy regulators of Bulgaria, Estonia, Hungary, Italy, Lithuania, Slovakia and Spain, and are addressed to the European Commission and ACER (in line with the Gas Regulation).
What is it about?
The Regulation widens the scope of the existing EU gas network codes and guidelines, expanding their application to third countries’ entry and exit points, starting from 5 August 2026.
If, for specific reasons the EU rules cannot be effectively implemented, national regulatory authorities can request a time-limited derogation.
What is the role of ACER?
After receiving the derogation requests, ACER had three months to provide its opinion to the European Commission. To inform its decision-making process, ACER conducted an extensive review of each request, held bilateral discussions with the relevant national regulatory authorities and applied a harmonised approach while considering the specifics of every Opinion.
The European Commission will decide whether to grant the derogations, taking into consideration the input provided by ACER.
