The entire EU energy market was thrown open to competition yesterday, allowing consumers to choose their gas and electricity suppliers and spelling an end for monopolistic state-run utilities.
The liberalization process has been resisted in some countries and welcomed in others, highlighting different attitudes to competition and the notion of protecting national interests in the energy sector.
The European Commission, which has championed the process, notes that reforms have not been fully implemented in some parts of the EU, meaning a handful of former state energy monopolies still enjoy a crushing grip on their domestic markets.
"It is undeniable that great progress has been made," EU Energy Commissioner Andris Piebalgs said in a recent speech. "However, it is equally undeniable that many of our basic objectives have not yet been achieved."
"Markets remain stubbornly national in scope, cross-border trade is difficult and limited, and far too many customers have little or no real competitive choice of supplier," he said.
In theory, companies have been able to choose a supplier for their gas and power since 2004. Yesterday marked the first time the household market has been opened.
Ten of the EU's 27 member states have led the liberalization vanguard ahead of the deadlines, with the UK setting the trend by opening its markets to competition as far back as 1990.
But the long journey to full market liberalization has been marked by frequent battles between the commission and more reluctant member states.
The commission is also keen to see more powerful energy regulators to fight anti-competitive behavior, improved cooperation between network operators and increased investment.
A magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck off the southern coast of Mindanao in the Philippines at 7:38am today, prompting the US Tsunami Warning System to issue an alert for neighboring countries, including Taiwan. The system issued a purple alert indicating a "tsunami threat." The potential threat zone includes Taiwan, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Yap and Palau. Philippine authorities were assessing the damage from the quake, with the office of civil defense seeking to verifying initial reports that 15 people had been killed and 129 injured in the region, mostly from falling debris. Arlene Hollero, disaster chief of Maasim town in the Philippines' Sarangani Province,
RESILIENCE: Taiwan plays a key role in semiconductors, energy, information infrastructure and advanced manufacturing, AIT Director Raymond Greene said Taiwan’s continued investment in deterrence and resilience remains vital, especially in uncrewed systems and other emerging technologies, American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Director Raymond Greene said yesterday. Greene made the remarks at the annual National Strategic Summit on Supply Chain Resilience held by the Research Institute for Democracy, Society and Emerging Technology (DSET), a government-backed think tank. As Taiwan last year became the US’ fourth-largest trading partner and supply chain security is becoming more important, cooperation in emerging technologies continues to deepen between the two countries, he said. The US is committed to accelerating innovation, building key infrastructure, strengthening cooperation
The National Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology yesterday showcased its locally developed variants of the Vision 60 robotic patrol dog, which it plans to deploy on the nation’s outlying territories in the South China Sea. The variants were produced under the Joint Lab project — created by the institute and domestic companies — and assembled with domestically produced motors, lenses and artificial intelligence (AI) systems alongside licensed tech from the US, Missile and Rocket Systems Research Division deputy director Jen Kuo-kang (任國光) told the media event at a military base in Taipei’s Dazhi (大直) area. Taiwan has built up its strengths
RIGHT DIRECTION: Taiwan’s efforts to prevent forced labor include a proposal to ‘fully prohibit’ employers from withholding workers’ documents, an official said Taiwan is to establish a mechanism to restrict imports of goods linked to forced labor, the Executive Yuan said yesterday, after the US proposed imposing additional tariffs on Taiwanese goods over labor concerns. “The Ministry of Labor and the Ministry of Economic Affairs are to establish an interministerial review procedure,” Executive Yuan spokesperson Michelle Lee (李慧芝) said at a news briefing in Taipei. “The government is to use the Foreign Trade Act [貿易法] as the legal basis to restrict imports of goods produced with forced labor” and bring its supply chain governance more in line with international standards on human rights, resilience
RSS