WRITTEN QUESTION E-0865/00 by W.G. van Velzen (PPE-DE) to the Commission. Implementation of the electricity directive.
20. 2. 2001 EN Official Journal of the European Communities C 53 E/33 Answer given by Mr Lamy on behalf of the Commission (19 April 2000) The current dispute in the World Trade Organisation (WTO) concerns an American law, Section 211 of the United States Omnibus Appropriations Act 1998, which, in the view of the Community and its Member States, violates a number of provisions of the WTO Agreement on trade-related aspects of intellectual property rights (TRIPs agreement). The main aim of the Commission is the proper implementa- tion and application by the United States of the WTO TRIPs agreement bearing in mind that Section 211 can potentially affect all European companies dealing with Cuba. It should be in the interest of the Community and its Member States to ensure that the provisions of the WTO TRIPs agreement are respected by all WTO members. The ongoing WTO dispute does not concern the question whether or not foreign uncompensated expropriations have to be recognised by other states. In fact, Section 211 affects American trademarks which were not and could not be expropriated by the Cuban government. Individuals and companies expropriated by the Cuban government remained the owners of property outside Cuba. In particular, their rights in trademarks registered in the United States were unaffected by the Cuban revolution. The WTO dispute rather relates to the treatment of trademarks in the United States which are identical or similar to trademarks which previously belonged to Cuban owners who failed to renew their trademarks before United States authorities. As a consequence of this failure by the previous Cuban owners, which is independent from the expropriation of their assets in Cuba by the Cuban Government, the respective trademarks fell into the public domain and no longer belonged to their Cuban owners, like the Havana Clubí trademark referred to by the Honourable Member. Such trademarks can be registered, renewed and enforced in the United States by new owners, however, only under certain conditions. These conditions are contained in Section 211 of the United States Omnibus Appropriations Act which was adopted by the United States almost 40 years after the Cuban revolution. (2001/C 53 E/037) WRITTEN QUESTION E-0865/00 by W. G. van Velzen (PPE-DE) to the Commission (22 March 2000) Subject: Implementation of the electricity directive Chapter IV of the electricity directive, Directive 96/92/EC (1), governs the role of transmission system operation. Article 7(5) and (6) read as follows: The system operator shall not discriminate between system users or classes of system users, particularly in favour of its subsidiaries or shareholders. Unless the transmission system is already independent from generation and distribution activities, the system operator shall be independent at least in management terms from other activities not relating to the transmission system. í Article 9 then states: The transmission system operator must preserve the confidentiality of commercially sensitive information obtained in the course of carrying out its business. í With a view to the satisfactory implementation of the agreements reached by the Commission, the Member States and the transmission system operators (TSOs), I have the following questions: 1. Can the Commission outline how the independence of the transmission operators in each Member State of the EU is ensured? 2. If it should be that there are in one or more Member States transmission operators which are still physically and/or legally dependent on the parent company, is the Commission prepared to instruct the national supervisory authorities at the earliest opportunity to ensure that such transmission operators become independent from the parent company de jure and de facto? C 53 E/34 Official Journal of the European Communities EN 20. 2. 2001 3. it is vital that data, particularly on If the system of European TSOs is to function satisfactorily, expected electricity generation, are kept secret. What assurances does the Commission have from the TSOs in the various Member States and from the supervisory authorities that the secrecy of data is physically guaranteed? (1) OJ L 27, 30. 1. 1997, p. 20. Answer given by Mrs de Palacio on behalf of the Commission (15 May 2000) The Member States have all ensured the accounting unbundling provisions in their legislation. As far 1. as unbundling of the business activities of the transmission system operator (TSO) from other interests of the electricity company, is concerned, there are three degrees to ensure this: management unbundling, legal unbundling and ownership unbundling, where management unbundling represents the minimum require- ment of Directive 96/92/EC of the Parliament and of the Council of 19 December 1996 concerning common rules for the internal market in electricity. The choices made by the Member States are the following: ü Belgium: Management unbundling, moving to legal unbundling, ü Denmark: Legal unbundling, ü Germany: 8 TSOs, some management unbundling, others legal unbundling, ü Greece: Management unbundling, ü Spain: Legal unbundling, separate ownership structure, however with the possibility of the same consortium owning the shares, ü France: Management unbundling, ü Ireland: Legal unbundling, ü Italy: Legal unbundling, ü Netherlands: Legal unbundling, moving to ownership unbundling, ü Austria: Legal unbundling, management unbundling of the networks of Tiwag and Illwerke, ü Portugal: Legal unbundling, ü Finland: Ownership unbundling, ü Sweden: Ownership unbundling, ü United Kingdom: Ownership unbundling in England and Wales, management unbundling in Scotland and Northern Ireland. Note: Luxembourg has not yet implemented the Directive 2. The Commission has sent letters to the Member States where there are TSOs that have only been unbundled in management terms asking for information on the way in which the management unbundling provision of the Directive is implemented in practice. In these letters, the Commission pointed out that it considers that the obligation of management independence and accounting unbundling requires at least functional independence and it specified the various ways in which this, in the Commissionís view, can be achieved. Once the Commission has received the replies, it will decide if further steps are required to ensure that management unbundling of the TSO is correctly implemented in all Member States. There is, however at this stage, no obligation on the Member States to legally unbundle transmission system operation or to require separate ownership of the natural monopoly activities from generation and supply. On the basis of the Directive, it would therefore be impossible for the Commission to instruct the national supervisory authorities to ensure that the TSOs become legally independent. 20. 2. 2001 EN Official Journal of the European Communities C 53 E/35 The Commission agrees with the Honourable Member that for effective competition to develop on 3. the internal electricity market it is of crucial importance that commercially sensitive business information is kept secret. That is why the provision in Article 9 of the directive is of eminent importance. The Commission will ensure that this provision is properly implemented by Member States and also will apply the competition rules should abuse of dominant position be revealed. (2001/C 53 E/038) WRITTEN QUESTION P-0867/00 by Michael Cashman (PSE) to the Commission (16 March 2000) Subject: Charter vessels in Greek waters I understand that Greece has a derogation from Council Regulation (EEC) No 3577/92 (1), under Article 6, paragraph 3, until 1 January 2004. Does this mean that Greece has the right to allow charter vessels in Greek waters only if they are registered in Greece (carry a Greek flag) and the skipper is Greek? (1) OJ L 364, 12. 12. 1992, p. 7. Answer given by Mrs de Palacio on behalf of the Commission (10 April 2000) Greece enjoys a temporary exemption from the application of Council Regulation (EEC) No 3577/92 of 7 December 1992 applying the principle of freedom to provide services to maritime transport within Member States (maritime cabotage) until 1 January 2004 for two maritime cabotage sectors which are that of regular passenger and ferry services and that of services provided with vessels of less than 650 gross tonnage (gt) in island cabotage. This means that the Greek authorities may reserve such services to Greek registered vessels, flying the Greek flag. Charter vessels of less than 650 gt registered in other Member States and flying other Member Statesí flags may, therefore, be excluded from Greek island cabotage until the above mentioned date. As regards the requirement that the captain has Greek nationality, the Commission is of the view that this is not incompatible with Community law. Indeed, taking into account the fact that the captain of the ship exercises aboard it sovereign powers (concerning, for example, investigation of crimes committed on board, respect of discipline as well as powers in relation to the civil status of passengers), the Commission considers that this post is covered by the derogation of Article 39(3) (ex Article 48) of the EC Treaty (cf. Commission observations in case Commission/France, C-334/94 (judgement of 7 March 1996)). (2001/C 53 E/039) WRITTEN QUESTION E-0872/00 by Alejandro Agag Longo (PPE-DE) to the Commission (22 March 2000) Subject: Internet in schools On 28 February this year the Commission sent the President of the Council its contribution with a view to the forthcoming Lisbon Summit on reform and employment. It mentions, as one of its priorities, that all schools should have access to the Internet by 2001