2023-07-07 19:08:05
The European Commission has presented a legislative proposal for a coordinated withdrawal of the EU and EU countries from a controversial international energy agreement. The Brussels authority announced on Friday that the so-called Energy Charter Treaty is no longer compatible with the EU’s climate ambitions.
In order to ensure equal treatment of investors in the EU and beyond, the EU, the member states and the European Atomic Energy Community Euratom should withdraw from the non-modernized treaty in an orderly manner.
Actually, the Commission and the countries wanted to modernize the so-called Energy Charter Treaty. However, negotiations on this had failed. The agreement, which came into force in 1998, was created to protect investments in gas, oil and coal projects and has long been criticized by environmental organizations. It allows investors, for example, to sue states before arbitral tribunals. The intention behind this is to give companies security when investing.
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The federal government decided to leave Germany at the end of last year. Other EU countries such as France, the Netherlands and Spain have also announced their withdrawal, and Italy withdrew in 2016. However, the phase-out period is 20 years. A joint exit from the EU must now be decided by the EU countries and with the approval of the EU Parliament.
The Federal Court of Justice is currently dealing with the question of whether EU states can stop arbitration proceedings before national courts on the basis of the Energy Charter Treaty. Among other things, it is regarding high investments by the RWE and Uniper groups in Dutch coal-fired power plants. A verdict is expected at the end of July. (dpa)
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