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European Federation of Local and Regional Energy Companies

CEDEC

The European Federation of Local and Regional Energy Companies represents 2000 local energy and broadband firms.

Lobbying Activity

CEDEC urges DSO-led data management to empower energy consumers

11 Sept 2025
Topic — Consultation on protecting and empowering consumers during the European green energy transition.
Message — The organization proposes assigning Distribution System Operators the role of managing metering and energy-sharing data. They suggest establishing Single Points of Contact to provide template agreements and jargon-free support. Additionally, they call for financial incentives like cost-reflective tariffs to reward grid efficiency.123
Why — Entrusting DSOs with data management reinforces the market position of regional energy companies.4
Impact — Households unable to switch from fossil gas quickly face significantly higher tariffs and price volatility.5
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CEDEC warns against including waste-to-energy in EU carbon market

8 Jul 2025
Topic — The European Commission is reviewing the scope and effectiveness of the EU carbon market.
Message — CEDEC opposes the inclusion of waste-to-energy plants in the EU ETS, fearing it compromises climate neutrality. They argue that the sector needs a holistic approach rather than increased costs.12
Why — Exclusion from the ETS prevents increased operational expenses and preserves the viability of waste-to-energy plants.3
Impact — The environment loses because penalising energy recovery may inadvertently promote methane emissions from landfilling.4
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Meeting with Silke Dalton (Cabinet of Executive Vice-President Henna Virkkunen)

5 Jun 2025 · Telecommunications

Meeting with Andrea Wechsler (Member of the European Parliament) and BUSINESSEUROPE and

23 Sept 2024 · EU Energy and Industry Policy

Meeting with Kathleen Van Brempt (Member of the European Parliament)

25 Jun 2024 · energy distribution grid

CEDEC warns EU against telecom deregulation and market consolidation

20 Jun 2024
Topic — The Commission is consulting on future scenarios for Europe's digital infrastructure.
Message — CEDEC opposes the push for market consolidation and deregulation that favors large pan-European companies. They advocate for maintaining existing competition rules to protect local public infrastructure operators and rural connectivity.12
Why — Maintaining current regulations protects the market position and investments of local public companies.34
Impact — Consumers would face higher prices and less choice if competition is reduced.56
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Meeting with Kathleen Van Brempt (Member of the European Parliament)

21 Sept 2023 · effects of the upcomming EMD on citizens and industry - APA

Meeting with Kathleen Van Brempt (Member of the European Parliament)

21 Mar 2023 · Electricity Market Design Reform - first exchange of views (APA)

Meeting with Ditte Juul-Joergensen (Director-General Energy) and Bureau Européen des Unions de Consommateurs and

20 Jan 2023 · U.S.-EU Task Force: Best practices in Energy Savings and Flexibility Other participants: Cleantech-Cluster Energy, ELVIA, EU DSO Entity, California Energy Commission, ASE, AEE, ComEd, Octopus Energy, OPower, Uplight

CEDEC Demands Longer Transition for High-Voltage Switchgear Ban

29 Jun 2022
Topic — The EU is reviewing rules to reduce emissions from fluorinated greenhouse gases.
Message — The federation requests a two-year extension for phasing out SF6 gas in electrical equipment. They also demand exemptions for maintenance parts and clearer definitions for climate impact limits.123
Why — Longer deadlines prevent market disruption and ensure local energy companies maintain supply.45
Impact — Pioneering manufacturers lose their potential monopoly status if multiple technical solutions are required.67
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Meeting with Jens Geier (Member of the European Parliament, Rapporteur) and Verband Kommunaler Unternehmen e.V.

10 Mar 2022 · Exchange on the gas market directive

Meeting with Gerassimos Thomas (Director-General Taxation and Customs Union) and EUROGAS and

22 Nov 2021 · Videoconference - Energy Taxation Directive in Fit for 55 package

Response to Revision of EU rules on Gas

10 Mar 2021

CEDEC believes that a new policy framework supporting the uptake of renewable, decarbonised and low-carbon gases, is urgently needed to allow these gases to play a role in achieving an integrated, reliable, sustainable and affordable energy system. Therefore we urge the EU not to hesitate any longer to provide a coherent reform that provides clear long term signals to investors, incentivizes the development of innovative gas-related technologies and supports the transformation (including decentralization) of the whole gas value chain, making the best use of existing distribution infrastructures. Main issues: 1. Integrated approach: The new evolutions and the transition in the gas sector (from natural gas to renewable, decentralized and low-carbon gases) must be covered by a single piece of legislation, not by separate legislative initiatives, given their direct interdependence. Also, all electricity and gas infrastructures should be approached in a more integrated way, involving TSOs & DSOs, with an evidently growing role for DSOs. Therefore, an EU DSO Entity for gas DSOs should be established, preferably aligned with the EU DSO Entity for electricity. 2. Technology-neutral transition: The general assumption that direct electrification is the most cost-effective and energy efficient way to decarbonise final energy demand – without prior impact assessment – is misleading. Starting points and development potentials of Member States and regions need to be taken into account. New legislation should be technology-neutral, supporting the development of local energy value chains, and ensuring a cost-/resource-efficient use in all applications (industrial processes, mobility and heating). 3. Inclusive and affordable transition: The current EC analysis and proposal does not take into account the financial impact on all energy consumers connected to the distribution grid, nor the social impact on residential consumers, especially for heating. New legislation should ensure an inclusive and affordable transition for all citizens. 4. New gases classification: The roadmap is inconsistent in its use of the terminology for different types of gases. CEDEC stresses the urgent need to use a clear classification for gases, and therefore a consistent use of the terms “renewable, decarbonized and low-carbon gases”, terminology that the EC uses itself in the Roadmap. The Madrid Forum has already discussed a valuable proposal that could serve as a solid basis. This clarification of terminology should be aligned with a parallel revision of terms and conditions in the REDII in order to stimulate the further development of sustainable molecule-based technologies in the EU. 5. Decentralized gases and distribution grids: CEDEC believes that security of supply should primarily be enhanced by strengthening the intra-EU energy market and by fully developing the potential of local resources, thereby reducing the reliance on energy imports from outside the EU. Evidently, the roadmap should therefore not focus only on transmission but include and acknowledge the role of distribution grids through which these gases will be connected and integrated in the energy market. Involving local stakeholders will also be key for exploiting the potential of synergies with sectors like waste and agriculture. 6. Gradual transition for gas distribution infrastructures: Gas distribution is capillary around Europe, and connects the majority of industry and the totality of residential consumers. The increasing supply and demand of new gases will require a gradual adaptation (‘retrofitting’) of gas infrastructure in order to minimise overall energy system investment costs. The existing rules not allowing gas network operators to own and operate other gases grids must be changed, as there will be a gradual process of evolving from natural gas, over blending towards fully renewable, decarbonized and low carbon gases.
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Response to Revision of the guidelines for trans-European Energy infrastructure

8 Mar 2021

CEDEC welcomes the opportunity to give feedback on the TEN-E review proposal. The alignment with the 2030 climate target and the 2050 climate neutrality objective is a welcomed step towards a future-proof energy infrastructure. It should also build on the Clean Energy Package. We regret, however, that the new TEN-E proposal is still exclusively centered around the idea of ‘significant cross-border impact’ and thus continues to focus on transmission grids and/or requiring TSO involvement, neglecting the added value of distribution level smart grid projects in a decentralizing energy system, be it for electricity or for gas. The proposal is not aligned with the requirements of the future integrated energy system, and with a greater focus on DSOs and citizens. Projects should neither be limited to cross-border participation nor to a compulsory participation of TSOs in infrastructure projects and should also encourage a citizen-centric approach at distribution level. On smart electricity grids: • The essential PCI criteria in Art. 4, along with the connected conditions in Annex IV (1)(c), de facto exclude all DSO-initiated electricity projects, as ‘TSOs of at least two Member States’ (integrating again the cross-border criterium) have to be involved. On top, the ranking of projects (with a minimum of 50.000 users) within a Member States will be based on affected grid users, giving priority again to large-scale projects. These criteria do not sufficiently recognise the importance of smart distribution grids in the decarbonisation pathway. • The energy infrastructure categories concerning electricity in Annex II (1)(d) should not exclude low voltage distribution. Even the Impact Assessment evaluation report (p. 123) highlights that a voltage threshold of 10kV leaves out essential installations of the PCIs. On smart gas grids: • The definition in Art. 2 perfectly describes what the goals of smartening the gas grids should be, as these elements are essential for the transition to renewable, decarbonised and low-carbon gases. • However, the essential PCI criteria in Art. 4, along with the connected conditions in Annex IV (1)(g), de facto exclude all DSO-initiated gas projects, as ‘TSOs of at least two Member States’ (integrating again the cross-border criterium) have to be involved. On top, the ranking of projects within a Member State will be based on affected grid users, giving priority again to large-scale projects. • The potential of renewable, decarbonised and low-carbon gases should be fully acknowledged not only at the transmission but also at gas distribution level – i.e. for heating & cooling and industrial processes – as the totality of commercial and residential and the majority of industrial gas consumers are connected to the distribution grid. Moreover, biomethane and biogas production is decentralised by definition and connected almost exclusively to DSOs. • Therefore, it is totally unlogic that in Chapter IV on cross-sectoral infrastructure planning all energy grid operators are integrated, except gas DSOs. On hydrogen: The proposal does not take into account the development potential of hydrogen at decentralised level by completely excluding hydrogen distribution grids connecting the local generation, distribution and consumption. This exclusion will hamper decarbonisation options for distribution-connected industry and buildings, which can both provide the initial demand to kick-start the hydrogen economy. On cross-sectoral infrastructure planning (Art. 11 & 12): On the process of the preparation of the TYNDPs and the methodologies on which they are based on, the current proposal fails to include the EU DSO Entity on equal footing with the ENTSOs. The EU DSO Entity is considered to be just one of various stakeholders to be consulted. To ensure alignment with the Electricity Regulation DSOs must be included as a priority in this process. For a complete answer, please see our full statement attached.
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Response to Proposal for a legislative act on methane leakage in the energy sector

26 Jan 2021

CEDEC highly welcomed the Commission objective to define monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV), improving leak detection and repair (LDAR), and limiting venting and flaring of fossil fuels, as mentioned in the EC Communication on a EU strategy to reduce methane emissions published 14 October 2020. We firmly believe that the only effective way to tackle the issue is to apply an efficient fully holistic approach – covering all sectors, all sources of methane emissions and every part of the respective value chains, and going beyond the EU borders. The EC proposal of working on methane emission standards, targets or other incentives to tackle methane emissions in relation to fossil energy imported to the EU (corresponding to the 75-90% of total methane emissions in the energy sector), is the right and crucial step in that direction. The gas distribution companies in the European Union have successfully been working for many years to reduce methane emissions through mandatory and voluntary programmes, and remain strongly committed to undertake even stronger steps to wherever possible further minimise methane emissions. Comparable efforts should be undertaken along the entire gas value chain. We believe that an improved MRV is essential to go forward, to allocate responsibilities within the value chain and to put figures in perspective. Leak detection and repair is already an essential task for distribution grid operators, and they have led to significant emission reductions, thereby limiting the environmental, health and safety risks as well as economic losses. Therefore: - On the purpose of improving information through better MRV, the option 2a (“sector coverage limited to upstream oil and gas”) should be the priority, notably in the short and medium term, as the overwhelming part of the issues are situated there. For the gas downstream business, the EC should build further on an existing EU methodology, not copy-pasting the OGMP framework which was built for a globally competitive environment, totally different from the European regulated downstream gas business. In the meantime, the OGMP methodology should continue to stay a voluntary initiative for the downstream gas sector. As for the other possible options for MRV, biogas/biomethane shall be left out of the scope as they are renewable gases (cf. REDII) and shall not be falsely associated with OGMP and global oil and gas business; also, including them would impose unnecessary burdens that may hamper their development and would be counterproductive for their contribution to the reduction of methane emissions from agriculture and waste sectors. - On the purpose of mitigating methane emissions through improved LDAR programs, we welcome the objective of the EC to introduce an obligation. LDAR programs currently differ between Member States, but for their positive effect in effectively reducing emissions, they constitute an adequate starting point for designing future legislation and regulation on the issue. A certain degree of harmonisation of these programs should be considered. - As outlined in the EC strategy, it is important the EC pushes NRAs in recognising as allowed costs the LDAR-related costs encountered by regulated entities in the energy sector. We regret not reading more details about it in this roadmap. - We urge the EC to think more thoroughly on the impact of measures like OGMP - that do not take into account the already strictly regulated environment for European gas distribution companies - on the operating costs for energy companies that would be passed on as higher energy prices for consumers. The social impact in this sense should not be overlooked.
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Response to Climate change mitigation and adaptation taxonomy

17 Dec 2020

CEDEC considers it crucial that these criteria do not hamper the development of local innovative and integrated solutions and keep the choices open from a wide variety of technological options. When establishing the technical screening criteria, the EC should also consider, in the context of the national transition paths and efforts, the specificities of the existing infrastructure sector, local geography, and social and economic externalities. Major issues are listed below (with more details in attachment): - The principle of technology neutrality laid down in the Art.19 of the Taxonomy Regulation is not respected: To support all available renewable options, to guarantee a level playing field and not to hamper any environmental objective, all renewable electricity generation technologies shall be subject to the same criteria in terms of life-cycle GHG emissions. Cf. additional criteria for geothermal energy and hydropower. - Transmission and distribution of electricity: We welcome the extensive consideration of all grid assets that all enable better integration of RES. However, criteria still need to be improved, notably about the CO2 values of connected capacity. - Transmission and distribution of renewable and low-carbon gases: We welcome the inclusion of distribution of these types of gases among the sustainable activities, also considering the investments necessary to reduce methane emissions in existing gas pipes (e.g. LDAR). However, we worry about the apparent contradictions in the use of the words “renewable and low-carbon gases” and hydrogen: contrary to the title of section 4.14, the descriptive part systematically uses “hydrogen or other low-carbon gases” which seems to wrongly consider all hydrogen as low-carbon, or could mean replacing the word renewable with hydrogen thus excluding other forms of renewable gases like biomethane. The text should be consistent on using the words “renewable, decarbonized and low-carbon gases”: these are clearly distinct categories with different characteristics. - Distribution and storage of natural gas: The complete exclusion of distribution and storage of natural gas does not take into account the benefits of coal to gas switching, which will be taken as a first and significant step to reduce emissions in several MSs. Also, natural gas storage and distribution facilities can easily serve for renewable and decarbonised gases after the transition phase. They both should be recognized as transitional activities. - Cogeneration of heat/cool and power from gaseous and liquid fuels: In order to support investments in retrofitting existing plants and in new plants, it is important to make clear that if the assets are or have become “sustainable” – effectively avoiding lock-in – these activities are no longer “transitional” but sustainable. - Electricity generation from bioenergy, also through cogeneration, including “construction and operation of electricity generation installations that produce electricity from biomass, biogas and biofuels”: This should not be considered as a “transitional activity” but as sustainable if it complies with sustainability criteria in existing legislation, especially when it contributes to emissions reduction from the waste and agriculture sector and to the circular economy; - Waste to Energy: the exclusion of the energy recovery from waste hampers the efforts to reduce landfill in many Member States, whereas it represents the preferable option according to the waste hierarchy. - No technology-neutral approach for hydropower: o generation: Electricity generation from hydropower is arbitrarily submitted to more extensive criteria. o storage: Most pumped storage hydropower plants across Europe have natural inflows and would not be counted as electricity storage technology under the Taxonomy. Unlike batteries and other electricity storage technologies, these plants would have to comply with a number of specific criteria set under the section 4.5.
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Response to Review of EU rules on fluorinated greenhouse gases

7 Sept 2020

CEDEC, the European Federation of Local Energy Companies, represents the interests of more than 1500 local and regional energy companies, active in every part of the electricity and gas value chain. CEDEC fully supports the Green Deal objectives the European Commission intends to achieve. Becoming the first carbon neutral continent in 2050 is an ambitious target which can only be achieved through changing the energy landscape in Europe. In this regard, Local Energy Companies have a significant role to play. By nature of our activities, the Local Energy Companies are actively contributing to the energy transition by creating reliable and sustainable energy initiatives. CEDEC’s members are also committed to reduce their own Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions linked to their activities and for instance regarding fluorinated gases (F-Gases). F-Gases, SF6 in particular, are used in many substations (primary, secondary) and have – by their excellent electrical properties - allowed to design compact and reliable switchgear for use in substations with limited dimensions. Moreover, increased reliability and standardization of switchgears with SF6 has led to a high level of operational experience, decreasing the maintenance costs of the devices and increasing occupational safety. These positive factors have enabled the development of reliable and sustainable initiatives in technically challenging solutions. European regulation on SF6 has to align with the Green Deal ambitions and the Montréal protocol. To ensure the right policy measures are taken, CEDEC welcomes the willingness of the European Commission to foresee an impact assessment. Please see attachment for a more detailed reply.
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Response to EU Methane Strategy

3 Aug 2020

CEDEC highly welcomes the Commission announced targeted efforts to streamline reporting and structurally address methane emissions reduction. We firmly believe that the only effective way to tackle the issue is to apply a fully holistic approach – covering all sectors, all sources of methane emissions and every part of the respective value chains, and going beyond the EU borders where applicable. To put methane emissions in the right perspective is key, as well between sectors as within the value chain. Methane emissions have to be measured with a consistent calculation based on a uniform methodology within the different sectors. This can be the basis to redistribute reduction targets that reflect the impact of every single sector, activity and actor. Possible methane emissions reduction targets and quotas can only be useful and efficient when they take into account the diverging baselines in Member States. Likewise, future initiatives aiming at tackling methane emissions should take into account the different characteristics of emitters. In the case of Distribution System Operators for gas, legislation and regulation should consider not only the nature of the business itself – with 2.2 million km distribution grids and related assets, mostly in urban areas, but also the regulated character of the business, with already existing overview by national competent authorities, including NRAs. Also, the DSO landscape in Europe has to be taken into account: it is characterized by a large number of DSOs (approximately 1500), of which many are small local actors, close to the consumer: therefore it is necessary to avoid overly complex, costly and unadapted processes and procedures. Traditionally the gas sector, and notably gas DSOs, always have taken their responsibility in reducing methane emissions, mainly driven by ensuring safety for the gas system and the customers. Researches show that diffuse methane emissions from natural gas have decreased by 50% in the EU since 1990, actually demonstrating the results of the many existing measures applied among European Member States. Leak detection and repair is already an essential task for grid operators, as reflected by the shared utilisation of Leak Detection and Repair programs. LDAR programs have led to significant emission reductions with the great advantage of limiting the economic losses and the environmental, health and safety risks. Even if the LDAR programs differ between Member States, they constitute an adequate starting point for designing future legislation and regulation on methane emissions. A certain degree of harmonisation of these programs should be considered. The verification and validation of data should always rely on statistically significant samples, and if new measurement and verification methods become available, the gas sector has an evident interest in testing them on reliability and efficiency and implementing these new methods.
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Response to A EU hydrogen strategy

8 Jun 2020

CEDEC welcomes the Commission´s decision to adopt a dedicated strategy on hydrogen. As it can be a renewable and decarbonised gas, hydrogen is an essential part of sector integration. CEDEC believes that a truly integrated energy system should be able to maximise the integration of local renewable energy resources, close to the customer, and involving the local communities in the energy transition. In our view, it shall go beyond sector coupling and refer to an optimised energy system which includes different energy carriers, sectors and the respective infrastructure. Where energy intensive applications are difficult to electrify and where electrification costs for specific end uses are relatively high, renewable, low carbon and decarbonised gases must step in. Through power-to-gas technology, renewable electricity can be transformed into molecules that can be more easily transported and stored. Hydrogen will play a crucial role in decarbonising the gas grid and gas applications in the long term, where the use of CO2-emitting natural gas will be gradually replaced by renewable and decarbonized gases. It can serve as a transportable, storable and flexible energy source for power generation, for fuel cells of large vehicles, and for thermal power station in combination with district heating systems. Hydrogen development is hindered by the lack of a coherent European regulatory framework providing clarity on rules for producers feeding renewable gases into the network, and recognising the need for retrofit investments in the gas sector. Currently in some national energy systems, lack of infrastructure on one hand and lack of electricity storage capabilities on the other hand, is wasting renewable energy potentials. Whereas technology is available, regulation often prohibits certain business models for storage-related infrastructure (e.g. through power-to-X). In order to support its development, European-wide standards for the injection and blending of hydrogen into the gas grid and for equipment manufacturers are key. The construction and operation of hydrogen grids underlies strict safety-related rules which are similar but not equal to those of gas grid operators. Therefore, the knowledge and technical competence of gas grid operators could be used to support the development and operation of the hydrogen infrastructure.
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Meeting with Riccardo Maggi (Cabinet of Executive Vice-President Frans Timmermans) and Verband Kommunaler Unternehmen e.V.

10 Feb 2020 · Grean deal, smart sector integration, renovation wave

Meeting with Kadri Simson (Commissioner) and

27 Jan 2020 · Decentralized energy systems, establishment of EU DSO entity

Response to Evaluation of the effectiveness and policy coherence of the guidelines for trans-European Energy infrastructure

10 Jul 2019

In the course of revising Regulation (1316/2013) establishing the Connecting Europe Facility, the co-legislators proposed to open the Trans-European Network-Energy (TEN-E) Regulation (347/2013) for evaluation in the light of the European Union’s present climate and energy targets. CEDEC welcomes this proposal and would like to emphasise a few key points. Since the adoption of the Regulation, the picture has changed substantially: the political priority and citizens’ consensus has moved from an energy policy focused on large infrastructures to more decentralised energy networks allowing customer empowerment and integration of large amounts of renewables. The TEN-E Regulation neither reflects this new situation in the European energy system nor supports reaching the Union’s climate and energy goals as put forward in the Clean Energy for All Europeans Package and the Paris Agreement. A revision is therefore necessary to make sure that the Regulation truly supports projects contributing to these energy and climate objectives. The DSOs have become ever more important and central in the energy system. This is particularly the case with regards to customer participation and integration of RES, as currently around 90 % of European renewables are connected at distribution level. However, to date, only four DSO smart grid projects have been selected as Projects of Common Interest (PCI) to be implemented under the TEN-E Framework, out of 170+. The continuous increase of renewable energy and electrification, in accordance with climate and energy targets, does and will require considerable investments in the distribution system’s infrastructure. It is thus essential to revise the TEN-E Regulation so that it reflects the importance of DSOs in the energy transition and the priorities in the transformation of the distribution systems and supports the facilitation of the needed investments. Furthermore, in order to best serve the realisation of EU’s energy and climate targets as well as empower customers, the TEN-E Framework must be revised to encompass and benefit from the contributions of prosumers and new technologies such as energy storage, demand side response, micro-grids (possibly cross-border), electric mobility. *This position is part of a Joint Statement from the EU DSO Associations on the proposal to revise the TEN-E Guidelines.
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Meeting with Miguel Arias Cañete (Commissioner) and BUSINESSEUROPE and

18 Feb 2016 · Market design

Meeting with Miguel Arias Cañete (Commissioner) and

18 Jun 2015 · Electricity Market design

Meeting with Maroš Šefčovič (Vice-President)

28 May 2015 · Retail Market

Meeting with Dominique Ristori (Director-General Energy)

21 May 2015 · Climate and Energy Policy

Meeting with Bernd Biervert (Cabinet of Vice-President Maroš Šefčovič)

23 Apr 2015 · Presenting CEDEC, Energy Union Strategy

Meeting with Peter Van Kemseke (Cabinet of Vice-President Maroš Šefčovič)

22 Jan 2015 · Energy Union and teh local dimension

Meeting with Eduard Hulicius (Cabinet of Commissioner Věra Jourová)

8 Jan 2015 · Consumers of domestic utilities