Key take-aways from the 11th eDelivery ICN meeting
The 11th meeting of eDelivery Informal Cooperation Network (ICN) again brought MS together on 26 November. Along the usual presentations and discussions, Peppol presented their ViDA pilot, ENTSOG shared their use of AS4 for gas transportation, DG MOVE showcased the upcoming EMSWe ecosystem, while Interoperable Solutions and pan-European cross-border network topics concluded the meeting.
Below is a summary of the meeting. For detailed meeting notes, see the event page.
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Summary
After opening the meeting, Maya Madrid, policy officer in charge of eDelivery policy, shared the information on the Digital Europe Programme (DIGITAL), highlighted recent updates regarding the eIDAS regulation and showcased the new European Commission's goals of enhancing the internal market, reducing bureaucracy, and improving collaborative solutions.
Afterwards, Lefteris Leontaridis, operations manager at OpenPeppol joined the ICN community for a second time after his previous participation this spring and gave an updated presentation of Peppol, an open network that simplifies exchanging business documents globally and its latest updates. He explained its structure, involving government authorities, IT service providers and businesses. Peppol has over 650 members globally and operates in 65 countries. It supports a many-to-many delivery model, enabling diverse businesses to connect through service providers. Recognising the need to enhance tax compliance and streamline cross-border trade as mandated by the recent ViDA directive, which requires the use of electronic invoicing and VAT reporting for cross-border transactions within the EU as of 2030, Peppol started a pilot to explore using a five-corner model to fulfill the new regulatory requirements by extracting VAT reporting data automatically from eInvoices and submitting it seamlessly to the tax authorities. If you want to learn more about Peppol, check the meeting notes from the 10th ICN meeting in May here.
Marcio Sampaio and Bogdan Dumitriu provided the latest updates from the building block, highlighting the launch of a new monitoring dashboard and the integration of eDelivery into data spaces, along with its adoption across various ecosystems. They shared insights from the public consultation on eDelivery 2.0, detailing changes in specifications and products. Monika Kokstaite explained the split of User Community Spaces into User Community pages and a restricted eDelivery groups space. She also informed the attendees of past and upcoming eDelivery events and invited anyone interested in staying updated with the latest eDelivery news to subscribe to the mailing list.
In the roundtable session, Member State representatives shared their experiences and progress in implementing eDelivery in their respective countries. Luxembourg's representative mentioned the use of Domibus in their national infrastructure and their exploration of Peppol's broader application. Denmark's representative discussed their implementation of a five-corner model for ViDA reporting and the establishment of the national Danish SML. The Netherlands discussed their efforts to adopt Peppol as a national standard, although progress is limited due to reliance on legacy systems.
Douglas Hill from ENTSOG provided an overview of the organisation's role in coordinating gas transmission system operators (TSOs) across the EU's 27 member states. With 43 members, ENTSOG plays a crucial role in promoting transparency and interoperability within the internal gas market. In 2015, ENTSOG adopted the AS4 protocol for secure, standardised data exchange among TSOs, developing a specialised profile tailored to the gas sector's needs. They plan to release an updated AS4 profile aligned with eDelivery specifications and extend its use to transport of hydrogen. To encourage adoption, ENTSOG will conduct workshops and collaborate with eDelivery to leverage the benefits of a common protocol, including enhanced security and reduced vendor lock-in.
During his session, Martins Zieds from DG MOVE presented the EMSWe, which aims to simplify maritime reporting across Member States. The EMSWe seeks to reduce administrative burdens by providing a single entry point for maritime reporting obligations, ensuring that reporting data is consistent and standardised across all Member States. It integrates solutions like Domibus and employs protocols such as eIDAS signature and AS4 for standardised and secure data exchange.
Andrea Halmos from DIGIT introduced the Interoperable Europe Act, aimed at enhancing digital government and interoperability across the EU to improve public service delivery. The Act mandates interoperability assessments for cross-border public services and focuses on four pillars: stronger governance, mandatory assessments, reuse of solutions, and public sector innovation. It includes a labelling system for selecting Interoperable Europe Solutions to promote standardisation and address interoperability challenges.
Gérard Soisson from the Ministry of Digitalisation in Luxembourg presented and opened the discussion on the need for a secure and interoperable cross-border data exchange network. He highlighted the inefficiencies and challenges due to the lack of standardisation and common governance across existing networks. The discussion focused on potential solutions, including leveraging frameworks like the European Digital Infrastructure Consortium (EDIC) and legislative support to ensure success and adoption. Participants expressed their willingness to support the idea while recognising the challenges in securing necessary resources and commitment. eDelivery is a Building Block provided by the European Commission, offering technical specifications, installable software and services for secure digital data exchange across a network of nodes. The eDelivery specifications include the eDelivery AS4 profile, an open technical specification ensuring secure, payload-agnostic and reliable data exchange; the eDelivery SMP profile, designed for publishing service metadata within a 4-corner network; the eDelivery BDXL profile, which enables locating Access Points within the network; and the eDelivery ebCore Party ID profile, a technical specification for the recommended notation for party addressing. Stay tuned for the latest updates on eDelivery services by checking the Building Block's X and web page. For more information, do not hesitate to register for personalised news or contact us via our portal or by email: EC-EDELIVERY-SUPPORT@ec.europa.eu.eDelivery Building Block