The Energy Committee of the European Parliament has voiced its support for maintaining the distinction between transmission and distribution system operators and has opposed the separation of ownership of the hydrogen and gas network at the distribution network level.
A coalition of organizations is urging the German Federal Government to ensure that the Council adopts the European Parliament’s viewpoint. The EU Commission plans to separate ownership of the hydrogen and gas networks at the distribution network level during the market ramp-up of the hydrogen economy. However, the initiative has been criticized by a large coalition of associations for impeding the rapid expansion of the hydrogen economy and undermining the success of the region’s energy transitions towards climate neutrality.
Members of the European Parliament have spoken out against the ownership separation of the hydrogen and gas networks at the distribution network level, and MEPs have decided to maintain the separation between transmission operators and distribution system operators. The potential for hydrogen and gas networks to operate together has also received praise from MEPs. The coalition of organizations is calling on the Federal Government to maintain its commitment to the EU Council of Energy Ministers to ensure that the Council upholds the European Parliament’s position.
The signatories of the alliance of associations criticize the fact that failing to use the current gas network would delay the ramp-up of hydrogen from the very beginning. In order to provide industry and commerce, both the transmission network and the greatly ramified distribution network are required.
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The Federal Association of Energy and Water Industries, the Federation of German Industries, the German Association of Rural Districts, the German Association of Cities, the German Association of Towns and Municipalities, the United Services Union, and the Association of Municipal Companies are some of the organizations that have signed the appeal. They insist that the coordinated transformation of the gas network infrastructure depends on a speedy, efficient, and socially equitable decarbonization of customers and firms connected to the gas network, as well as the preservation of the security of supply.
