Welcome to the "Energy for a Changing World" website of the Directorate-General for Energy and Transport

Energy for a Changing World

A European energy policy must pursue the objective of a sustainable, competitive and secure supply of energy.
In January 2007, the European Commission adopted new proposals for an ambitious energy policy for Europe.

Energy Consumers' Rights

Reinforce the rights of energy consumers

The European Commission intends to reinforce the rights of energy consumers in the European Union by establishing a European Charter on the Rights of Energy Consumers.

The Energy Consumers' Charter aims to clearly  set out basic consumer rights with regard to electricity and gas supply, contracts, information, prices, dispute settlement and protection against unfair commercial practices.

The publication of the Commission's ideas on a future Charter is to be followed by a public consultation among stakeholders. The aim is to ensure that, by the end of the year, major stakeholders – from consumer organisations to industry – can sign up to the core consumer principles set out in the Charter.

Events

5 July 2007	Press Conference with	Energy Commissioner Andris Piebalgs
	and	Consumer Protection Commissioner Meglena Kuneva

Documents

Communication of the Commission  COM(2007) 386 final of 5.7.2007
Towards a European Charter on the Rights of Energy Consumers

Press releases, memo and Q&A

• Towards a European Charter on the Rights of Energy Consumers
  05/07/2007 (IP/07/1026)
• Towards a European Energy Consumers’ Charter: protecting the consumers' right to choose
  05/07/2007 (MEMO/0278)
• Questions on the opening of the energy markets and the Charter
  05/07/2007 (MEMO/0279)
   
• European Commission sets out a new impetus for the internal energy market
  10/01/2007 (MEMO/07/9)

Public consultation on a European Charter on the Rights of Energy Consumers

The Commission invites all interested parties to comment on a text containing elements for a European Charter on the Rights of Energy Consumers. Comments can be sent to the following address:

European Commission

Directorate General for Energy and Transport

Public consultation on European Charter on the Rights of Energy Consumers
tren-energy-consumer-rights@ec.europa.eu  mailbox
Paper copies may be sent to
Rue De Mot 28

B-1049 Brussels
 

Comments should be sent to the Commission by 28 September 2007 at the latest. Replies and comments should mention the number of the subject they are referring to.

If you have views on some questions and not others, do not hesitate to send an answer covering only these questions.

For the information of interested parties, the Directorate General for Energy and Transport of the Commission will put contributions received electronically, together with the sender's contact data, on this page provided the senders concerned have explicitly agreed to their publication.

For data protection reasons, the Commission will not process any specified personal data that you include with your reply.

In the light of inter alia the contributions received, the Commission intends to adopt a second communication containing the Charter.

Elements for a future European Charter on the Rights of Energy Consumers

Useful links

Consumer Protection Web site

Agathe Power is the website (available in 22 languages) of the energy consumers rights campaign. You will find  information tools and promotional material on the campaign on the opening of the electricity and gas markets and on energy consumers’ rights in the European Union. You can also download campaign posters, a press kit, campaign fact sheets and country fact sheets.