Intergovernmental energy agreements

When individual EU countries negotiate energy agreements with third countries, they must ensure that these agreements comply with EU law. This helps ensure the smooth functioning of the EU's internal energy market and alignment with the EU’s external energy strategy.

Those international agreements include intergovernmental agreements between EU countries and third countries in the field of energy.

In January 2012, the EU established an information exchange mechanism to facilitate the coordination with and between EU countries when negotiating international energy agreements with third countries (Decision 994/2012/EU). This decision was repealed and replaced by the Decision on establishing an information exchange mechanism in the field of energy (EU/2017/684), which entered into force on 2 May 2017.

It introduces a mandatory ex-ante assessment by the Commission to help EU countries ensure the compatibility of intergovernmental energy agreements (IGAs) with EU law. However, this ex-ante assessment is only required for IGAs in the field of gas and oil. IGAs in the field of electricity are also to be submitted to the Commission, but only after their ratification. EU countries may, however, submit IGAs related to electricity on a voluntary basis for an ex-ante assessment by the Commission.

The decision also requires

• EU countries to submit all existing international energy agreements to the Commission for assessment
• EU countries to notify a draft IGA relating to oil and gas to the Commission before the closure of formal negotiations for an ex-ante assessment
• EU countries to submit an IGA relating to electricity to the Commission upon their ratification for an ex-post assessment
• the Commission to make the documents IGAs available to other EU countries, either in full or as a summary. A summary should contain the subject matter, aim and scope, duration, contracting parties, and information on the main elements of an agreement

It provides that EU countries may request the assistance of the Commission when negotiating international energy agreements

• Decision (EU) 2017/684 on establishing an information exchange mechanism with regard to intergovernmental agreements and non-binding instruments between Member States and third countries in the field of energy
• Commission report on the security of energy supply and international cooperation (COM(2013) 638)
• Decision 994/2012/EU establishing an information exchange mechanism with regard to intergovernmental agreements between Member States and third countries in the field of energy