Regulation (EU) No 1227/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council
of 25 October 2011
on wholesale energy market integrity and transparency
(Text with EEA relevance)
THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regard to the Treaty on Functioning of European Union, and in particular Article 194(2) thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission,
After transmission of the draft legislative act to the national parliaments,
Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee(1),
After consulting the Committee of the Regions of the European Union,
Acting in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure(2),
Whereas:
(1) It is important to ensure that consumers and other market participants can have confidence in the integrity of electricity and gas markets, that prices set on wholesale energy markets reflect a fair and competitive interplay between supply and demand, and that no profits can be drawn from market abuse.
(2) The goal of increased integrity and transparency of wholesale energy markets should be to foster open and fair competition in wholesale energy markets for the benefit of final consumers of energy.
(3) The advice of the Committee of European Securities Regulators and the European Regulators Group for Electricity and Gas confirmed that the scope of existing legislation might not properly address market integrity issues on the electricity and gas markets and recommended the consideration of an appropriate legislative framework tailored to the energy sector which prevents market abuse and takes sector-specific conditions into account which are not covered by other directives and regulations.
(4) Wholesale energy markets are increasingly interlinked across the Union. Market abuse in one Member State often affects not only wholesale prices for electricity and natural gas across national borders, but also retail prices to consumers and micro-enterprises. Therefore the concern to ensure the integrity of markets cannot be a matter only for individual Member States. Strong cross-border market monitoring is essential for the completion of a fully functioning, interconnected and integrated internal energy market.
(5) Wholesale energy markets encompass both commodity markets and derivative markets, which are of vital importance to the energy and financial markets, and price formation in both sectors is interlinked. They include, inter alia, regulated markets, multilateral trading facilities and over-the-counter (OTC) transactions and bilateral contracts, direct or through brokers.
(6) To date, energy market monitoring practices have been Member State and sector-specific. Depending on the overall market framework and regulatory situation, this can result in trading activities being subject to multiple jurisdictions with monitoring carried out by several different authorities, possibly located in different Member States. This can result in a lack of clarity as to where responsibility rests and even to a situation where no such monitoring exists.
(7) Behaviour which undermines the integrity of the energy market is currently not clearly prohibited on some of the most important energy markets. In order to protect final consumers and guarantee affordable energy prices for European citizens, it is essential to prohibit such behaviour.
(8) Derivative trading, which may be either physically or financially settled, and commodity trading are used together on wholesale energy markets. It is therefore important that the definitions of insider trading and market manipulation, which constitute market abuse, be compatible between derivatives and commodity markets. This Regulation should in principle apply to all transactions concluded but at the same time should take into account the specific characteristics of the wholesale energy markets.
(9) Retail contracts which cover the supply of electricity or natural gas to final customers are not susceptible to market manipulation in the same way as wholesale contracts which are easily bought and sold. None the less, the consumption decisions of the largest energy users can also affect prices on wholesale energy markets, with effects across national borders. Therefore it is appropriate to consider the supply contracts of such large users in the context of ensuring the integrity of wholesale energy markets.
(10) Taking account of the results of the examination set out in the Commission Communication of 21 December 2010 entitled ‘Towards an enhanced market oversight framework for the EU Emissions Trading Scheme’, the Commission should consider bringing forward a legislative proposal to tackle the identified shortcomings in the transparency, integrity and supervision of the European carbon market in an appropriate time-frame.
(11) Regulation (EC) No 714/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 July 2009 on conditions for access to the network for cross-border exchanges in electricity(3) and Regulation (EC) No 715/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 July 2009 on conditions for access to the natural gas transmission networks(4) recognise that equal access to information on the physical status and efficiency of the system is necessary to enable all market participants to assess the overall demand and supply situation and identify the reasons for fluctuations in the wholesale price.
(12) The use or attempted use of inside information to trade either on one's own account or on the account of a third party should be clearly prohibited. Use of inside information can also consist in trading in wholesale energy products by persons who know, or ought to know, that the information they possess is inside information. Information regarding the market participant's own plans and strategies for trading should not be considered as inside information. Information which is required to be made public in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 714/2009 or (EC) No 715/2009, including guidelines and network codes adopted pursuant to those Regulations, may serve, if it is price-sensitive information, as the basis of market participants' decisions to enter into transactions in wholesale energy products and therefore could constitute inside information until it has been made public.
(13) Manipulation on wholesale energy markets involves actions undertaken by persons that artificially cause prices to be at a level not justified by market forces of supply and demand, including actual availability of production, storage or transportation capacity, and demand. Forms of market manipulation include placing and withdrawal of false orders; spreading of false or misleading information or rumours through the media, including the internet, or by any other means; deliberately providing false information to undertakings which provide price assessments or market reports with the effect of misleading market participants acting on the basis of those price assessments or market reports; and deliberately making it appear that the availability of electricity generation capacity or natural gas availability, or the availability of transmission capacity is other than the capacity which is actually technically available where such information affects or is likely to affect the price of wholesale energy products. Manipulation and its effects may occur across borders, between electricity and gas markets and across financial and commodity markets, including the emission allowances markets.
(14) Examples of market manipulation and attempts to manipulate the market include conduct by a person, or persons acting in collaboration, to secure a decisive position over the supply of, or demand for, a wholesale energy product which has, or could have, the effect of fixing, directly or indirectly, prices or creating other unfair trading conditions; and the offering, buying or selling of wholesale energy products with the purpose, intention or effect of misleading market participants acting on the basis of reference prices. However, accepted market practices such as those applying in the financial services area, which are currently defined by Article 1(5) of Directive 2003/6/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 28 January 2003 on insider dealing and market manipulation (market abuse)(5) and which may be adapted if that Directive is amended, could be a legitimate way for market participants to secure a favourable price for a wholesale energy product.
(15) The disclosure of inside information in relation to a wholesale energy product by journalists acting in their professional capacity should be assessed taking into account the rules governing their profession and the rules governing the freedom of the press, unless those persons derive, directly or indirectly, an advantage or profits from the dissemination of the information in question or when disclosure is made with the intention of misleading the market as to the supply of, demand for, or price of wholesale energy products.
(16) As financial markets develop, the concepts of market abuse applying to those markets will be adapted. In order to ensure the necessary flexibility to respond quickly to these developments therefore, the power to adopt acts in accordance with Article 290 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union should be delegated to the Commission in respect of technical updating of the definitions of inside information and market manipulation for the purpose of ensuring coherence with other relevant Union legislation in the fields of financial services and energy. It is of particular importance that the Commission carry out appropriate consultations during its preparatory work, including at expert level. The Commission should, when preparing and drawing up delegated acts, ensure a simultaneous, timely and appropriate transmission of relevant documents to the European Parliament and the Council.
(17) Efficient market monitoring at Union level is vital for detecting and deterring market abuse on wholesale energy markets. The Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators established by Regulation (EC) No 713/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council(6) (‘the Agency’) is best placed to carry out such monitoring as it has both a Union-wide view of electricity and gas markets, and the necessary expertise in the operation of electricity and gas markets and systems in the Union. National regulatory authorities, which have a comprehensive understanding of developments on energy markets in their Member State, should have an important role in ensuring efficient market monitoring at national level. Close cooperation and coordination between the Agency and national authorities is therefore necessary to ensure proper monitoring and transparency of energy markets. The collection of data by the Agency is without prejudice to the right of national authorities to collect additional data for national purposes.
(18) Efficient market monitoring requires regular and timely access to records of transactions as well as access to structural data on capacity and use of facilities for production, storage, consumption or transmission of electricity or natural gas. For this reason market participants, including transmission system operators, suppliers, traders, producers, brokers and large users, who trade wholesale energy products should be required to provide that information to the Agency. The Agency may for its part establish strong links with major organised market places.
(19) In order to ensure uniform conditions for the implementation of the provisions on data collection, implementing powers should be conferred on the Commission. Those powers should be exercised in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 February 2011 laying down the rules and general principles concerning mechanisms for control by the Member States of the Commission's exercise of implementing powers(7). Reporting obligations should be kept to a minimum and not create unnecessary costs or administrative burdens for market participants. The uniform rules on the reporting of information should therefore undergo an ex-ante cost-benefit analysis, should avoid double reporting, and should take account of reporting frameworks developed under other relevant legislation. Furthermore, the required information or parts thereof should be collected from other persons and existing sources where possible. Where a market participant or a third party acting on its behalf, a trade reporting system, an organised market, a trade-matching system, or other person professionally arranging transactions has fulfilled its reporting obligations to a competent authority in accordance with Directive 2004/39/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 April 2004 on markets in financial instruments(8) or applicable Union legislation on derivative transactions, central counterparties and trade repositories, its reporting obligation should be considered fulfilled also under this Regulation, but only to the extent that all the information required under this Regulation has been reported.
(20) It is important that the Commission and the Agency work closely together in implementing this Regulation and consult appropriately with the European Networks of Transmission System Operators for Electricity and for Gas and the European Securities and Markets Authority established by Regulation (EU) No 1095/2010 of the European Parliament and of the Council(9) (ESMA), with national regulatory authorities, competent financial authorities and other Member State authorities such as national competition authorities, and with stakeholders such as organised market places (e.g. energy exchanges) and market participants.
(21) A European register of market participants, based on national registers, should be established to enhance the overall transparency and integrity of wholesale energy markets. One year after the establishment of that register, the Commission should assess in cooperation with the Agency, in line with the reports submitted by the Agency to the Commission, and with the national regulatory authorities, the functioning and the usefulness of the European register of market participants. If deemed appropriate based on that assessment, the Commission should consider presenting further instruments to enhance the overall transparency and integrity of wholesale energy markets and to ensure a Union-wide level playing field for market participants.
(22) In order to facilitate efficient monitoring of all aspects of trading in wholesale energy products, the Agency should establish mechanisms to give access to the information which it receives on transactions on wholesale energy markets to other relevant authorities, in particular to ESMA, national regulatory authorities, competent financial authorities of the Member States, national competition authorities, and other relevant authorities.
(23) The Agency should ensure the operational security and protection of the data which it receives, prevent unauthorised access to the information kept by the Agency, and establish procedures to ensure that the data it collects are not misused by persons with an authorised access to them. The Agency should also ascertain whether those authorities which have access to the data held by the Agency are able to maintain an equally high level of security and are bound by appropriate confidentiality arrangements. The operational security of the IT systems used for processing and transmitting the data therefore also needs to be ensured. For setting up an IT system that ensures the highest possible level of data confidentiality, the Agency should be encouraged to work closely with the European Network and Information Security Agency (ENISA). These rules should also apply to other authorities that are entitled to access to the data for the purpose of this Regulation.
(24) This Regulation respects fundamental rights and observes the principles recognised in particular by the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union as referred to in Article 6 of the Treaty on European Union and the constitutional traditions in the Member States and should be applied in accordance with the right to freedom of expression and information recognised in Article 11 of the Charter.
(25) Where information is not, or no longer, sensitive from a commercial or security viewpoint, the Agency should be able to make that information available to market participants and the wider public with a view to contributing to enhanced market knowledge. Such transparency will help build confidence in the market and foster the development of knowledge about the functioning of wholesale energy markets. The Agency should establish and make publicly available rules on how it will make that information available in a fair and transparent manner.
(26) National regulatory authorities should be responsible for ensuring that this Regulation is enforced in the Member States. To this end they should have the necessary investigatory powers to allow them to carry out that task efficiently. These powers should be exercised in conformity with national law and may be subject to appropriate oversight.
(27) The Agency should ensure that this Regulation is applied in a coordinated way across the Union, coherent with the application of Directive 2003/6/EC. To that effect, the Agency should publish non-binding guidance on the application of the definitions set out in this Regulation, as appropriate. That guidance should address, inter alia, the issue of accepted market practices. Furthermore, since market abuse on wholesale energy markets often affects more than one Member State, the Agency should have an important role in ensuring that investigations are carried out in an efficient and coherent way. To achieve this, the Agency should be able to request cooperation and to coordinate the operation of investigatory groups comprised of representatives of the concerned national regulatory authorities and, where appropriate, other authorities including national competition authorities.
(28) The Agency should be provided with the appropriate financial and human resources, in order to adequately fulfil the additional tasks assigned to it under this Regulation. For this purpose, the procedure for the establishment, implementation and control of its budget as set out in Articles 23 and 24 of Regulation (EC) No 713/2009 should take due account of these tasks. The budgetary authority should ensure that the best standards of efficiency are met.
(29) National regulatory authorities, competent financial authorities of the Member States and, where appropriate, national competition authorities should cooperate to ensure a coordinated approach to tackling market abuse on wholesale energy markets which encompasses both commodity markets and derivatives markets. That cooperation should include the mutual exchange of information regarding suspicions that acts which are likely to constitute a breach of this Regulation, Directive 2003/6/EC, or competition law are being or have been carried out on wholesale energy markets. Furthermore, that cooperation should contribute to a coherent and consistent approach to investigations and judicial proceedings.
(30) It is important that the obligation of professional secrecy applies to those who receive confidential information in accordance with this Regulation. The Agency, national regulatory authorities, competent financial authorities of the Member States and national competition authorities should ensure the confidentiality, integrity and protection of the information which they receive.
(31) It is important that the penalties for breaches of this Regulation are proportionate, effective and dissuasive, and reflect the gravity of the infringements, the damage caused to consumers and the potential gains from trading on the basis of inside information and market manipulation. The application of these penalties should be carried out in accordance with national law. Recognising the interactions between trading in electricity and natural gas derivative products and trading in actual electricity and natural gas, the penalties for breaches of this Regulation should be in line with the penalties adopted by the Member States in implementing Directive 2003/6/EC. Taking account of the consultation on the Commission Communication of 12 December 2010 entitled ‘Reinforcing sanctioning regimes in the financial services sector’, the Commission should consider presenting proposals to harmonise minimum standards for the penalties systems of Member States in an appropriate time-frame. This Regulation affects neither national rules on the standard of proof nor obligations of national regulatory authorities and courts of the Member States to ascertain the relevant facts of a case, provided that such rules and obligations are compatible with general principles of Union law.
(32) Since the objective of this Regulation, namely the provision of a harmonised framework to ensure wholesale energy market transparency and integrity, cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States and can therefore be better achieved at Union level, the Union may adopt measures, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity as set out in Article 5 of the Treaty on European Union. In accordance with the principle of proportionality, as set out in that Article, this Regulation does not go beyond what is necessary in order to achieve that objective,
HAVE ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:
Article 1 F1Subject matter, scope and relationship with other ... legislation
1.This Regulation establishes rules prohibiting abusive practices affecting wholesale energy markets which are coherent with the rules applicable in financial markets and with the proper functioning of those wholesale energy markets whilst taking into account their specific characteristics. It provides for the monitoring of wholesale energy markets[F2 by the national regulatory authorityF2] .
2.F5This Regulation applies to trading in wholesale energy products. Articles 3 and 5 of this Regulation shall not apply to wholesale energy products which are [F3relevant financial instrumentsF3] . This Regulation is without prejudice to [F4the Market Abuse Regulation and relevant law on markets in financial instrumentsF4] as well as to the application of ... competition law to the practices covered by this Regulation.
3.[F6 The national regulatory authority, the FCA and, where appropriate, the CMA must cooperateF6] to ensure that a coordinated approach is taken to the enforcement of the relevant rules where actions relate to one or more [F7relevant financial instrumentsF7] and also to one or more wholesale energy products to which Articles 3, 4 and 5 of this Regulation apply.
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Article 2 Definitions
For the purposes of this Regulation the following definitions shall apply:
(1) ‘inside information’ means information of a precise nature which has not been made public, which relates, directly or indirectly, to one or more wholesale energy products and which, if it were made public, would be likely to significantly affect the prices of those wholesale energy products.
For the purposes of this definition, ‘information’ means:
[F10 (a)information which is required to be made public in accordance with:
(i)guidelines and network codes adopted pursuant to Regulation (EC) No 714/2009 before 1 January 2020; or
(ii)the Electricity Regulation or the Gas Regulation, including guidelines and network codes adopted, or regulations made, pursuant to those Regulations;F10]
(b)information relating to the capacity and use of facilities for production, storage, consumption or transmission of electricity or natural gas or related to the capacity and use of LNG facilities, including planned or unplanned unavailability of these facilities;
(c)F11information which is required to be disclosed in accordance with legal or regulatory provisions ..., market rules, and contracts or customs on the relevant wholesale energy market, in so far as this information is likely to have a significant effect on the prices of wholesale energy products; and
(d)other information that a reasonable market participant would be likely to use as part of the basis of its decision to enter into a transaction relating to, or to issue an order to trade in, a wholesale energy product.
Information shall be deemed to be of a precise nature if it indicates a set of circumstances which exists or may reasonably be expected to come into existence, or an event which has occurred or may reasonably be expected to do so, and if it is specific enough to enable a conclusion to be drawn as to the possible effect of that set of circumstances or event on the prices of wholesale energy products;
(2) ‘market manipulation’ means:
(a)entering into any transaction or issuing any order to trade in wholesale energy products which:
(i)gives, or is likely to give, false or misleading signals as to the supply of, demand for, or price of wholesale energy products;
(ii)secures or attempts to secure, by a person, or persons acting in collaboration, the price of one or several wholesale energy products at an artificial level, unless the person who entered into the transaction or issued the order to trade establishes that his reasons for doing so are legitimate and that that transaction or order to trade conforms to accepted market practices on the wholesale energy market concerned; or
(iii)employs or attempts to employ a fictitious device or any other form of deception or contrivance which gives, or is likely to give, false or misleading signals regarding the supply of, demand for, or price of wholesale energy products;
or
(b)disseminating information through the media, including the internet, or by any other means, which gives, or is likely to give, false or misleading signals as to the supply of, demand for, or price of wholesale energy products, including the dissemination of rumours and false or misleading news, where the disseminating person knew, or ought to have known, that the information was false or misleading.
When information is disseminated for the purposes of journalism or artistic expression, such dissemination of information shall be assessed taking into account the rules governing the freedom of the press and freedom of expression in other media, unless:
(i)those persons derive, directly or indirectly, an advantage or profits from the dissemination of the information in question; or
(ii)the disclosure or dissemination is made with the intention of misleading the market as to the supply of, demand for, or price of wholesale energy products;
(3) ‘attempt to manipulate the market’ means:
(a)entering into any transaction, issuing any order to trade or taking any other action relating to a wholesale energy product with the intention of:
(i)giving false or misleading signals as to the supply of, demand for, or price of wholesale energy products;
(ii)securing the price of one or several wholesale energy products at an artificial level, unless the person who entered into the transaction or issued the order to trade establishes that his reasons for doing so are legitimate and that that transaction or order to trade conforms to accepted market practices on the wholesale energy market concerned; or
(iii)employing a fictitious device or any other form of deception or contrivance which gives, or is likely to give, false or misleading signals regarding the supply of, demand for, or price of wholesale energy products;
or
(b)disseminating information through the media, including the internet, or by any other means with the intention of giving false or misleading signals as to the supply of, demand for, or price of wholesale energy products;
(4) ‘wholesale energy products’ means the following contracts and derivatives, irrespective of where and how they are traded:
(a)contracts for the supply of electricity or natural gas where delivery is in [F12the United Kingdom or the EUF12] ;
(b)derivatives relating to electricity or natural gas produced, traded or delivered in [F12the United Kingdom or the EUF12] ;
(c)contracts relating to the transportation of electricity or natural gas in [F12the United Kingdom or the EUF12] ;
(d)derivatives relating to the transportation of electricity or natural gas in [F12the United Kingdom or the EUF12] .
Contracts for the supply and distribution of electricity or natural gas for the use of final customers are not wholesale energy products. However, contracts for the supply and distribution of electricity or natural gas to final customers with a consumption capacity greater than the threshold set out in the second paragraph of point (5) shall be treated as wholesale energy products;
(5) ‘consumption capacity’ means the consumption of a final customer of either electricity or natural gas at full use of that customer's production capacity. It comprises all consumption by that customer as a single economic entity, in so far as consumption takes place on markets with interrelated wholesale prices.
For the purposes of this definition, consumption at individual plants under the control of a single economic entity that have a consumption capacity of less than 600 GWh per year shall not be taken into account in so far as those plants do not exert a joint influence on wholesale energy market prices due to their being located in different relevant geographical markets;
(6) ‘wholesale energy market’ means any market within [F13 the United Kingdom or the EU F13] on which wholesale energy products are traded;
(7) ‘market participant’ means any person, including transmission system operators, who enters into transactions, including the placing of orders to trade, in one or more wholesale energy markets;
(8) ‘person’ means any natural or legal person;
[F14 (8A) ‘national authority’ means—
(a)the Secretary of State, in relation to Great Britain;
(b)the Secretary of State or the Northern Ireland department, in relation to Northern Ireland;
(8B) ‘the Northern Ireland department’ means the Department for the Economy; F14]
F15(9). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
[F16 (10) ‘the national regulatory authority’ means—
(a)the GB Authority in relation to Great Britain;
(b)the NI Authority in relation to Northern Ireland;
(10A) ‘the GB Authority’ means the Gas and Electricity Markets Authority;
(10B) ‘the NI Authority’ means the Northern Ireland Authority for Utility Regulation;
(10C) ‘national regulatory authorities of member States’ means authorities designated as national regulatory authorities by a member State in accordance with Article 35(1) of Directive 2009/72/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council concerning common rules for the internal market in electricity or Article 39(1) of Directive 2009/73/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council concerning common rules for the internal market in natural gas;
(11) ‘transmission system operator’ has the meaning set out in Article 2 of the Electricity Regulation in relation to electricity, and has the meaning set out in Article 2 of the Gas Regulation in relation to gas;
(12) ‘parent undertaking’ has the meaning given in section 1162 of the Companies Act 2006 ; F16]
(13) ‘related undertaking’ means either a subsidiary or other undertaking in which a participation is held, or an undertaking linked with another undertaking by a relationship within the meaning of Article 12(1) of Directive 83/349/EEC ;
[F17 (14) ‘distribution of natural gas’ has the meaning given to “distribution” in Article 2 of the Gas Regulation;
(15) ‘distribution of electricity’ has the meaning given to “distribution” in Article 2 of the Electricity Regulation; F17]
[F18 (16) ‘the Electricity Regulation’ means Regulation (EU) 2019/943 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 June 2019 on the internal market for electricity (recast);
(17) ‘the Gas Regulation’ means Regulation (EC) No 715/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council on conditions for access to the natural gas transmission networks;
(18) ‘the Market Abuse Regulation’ means Regulation (EU) No 596/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council on market abuse;
(19) ‘relevant law on markets in financial instruments’ means—
(a)Regulation (EU) No 600/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council on markets in financial instruments; and
(b)any law relied upon immediately before IP completion day to implement Directive 2014/65/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council on markets in financial instruments in the United Kingdom—
(i)as it is in force on IP completion day, in the case of rules made by the FCA or the Prudential Regulation Authority under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000;
(ii)as amended from time to time in all other cases;
(20) ‘the REMIT Implementing Regulation’ means Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 1348/2014 on data reporting;
(21) ‘the Agency’ means the Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators established under Regulation (EU) 2019/942 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 June 2019 (recast) (as it applies in EU law);
(22) ‘the CMA’ means the Competition and Markets Authority;
(23) ‘the FCA’ means the Financial Conduct Authority;
(24) ‘industry code’ means a document maintained in accordance with a licence condition;
(25) ‘licence condition’ means a condition of a licence under—
(a)section 7, 7ZA or 7A of the Gas Act 1986 or section 6 of the Electricity Act 1989 in relation to Great Britain; or
(b)Article 8 of the Gas (Northern Ireland) Order 1996 in relation to Northern Ireland;
(26) ‘relevant financial instrument’ means a financial instrument to which Article 2(1)(a) or (d) of the Market Abuse Regulation applies, with Article 2(1)(d) being read for this purpose as if the references to “point (a), (b) or (c)” and to “those points” were references to “point (a)”;
(27) ‘the SEM’ means the Single Electricity Market as defined in the Electricity (Single Wholesale Market) (Northern Ireland) Order 2007 . F18]
Article 3 Prohibition of insider trading
1.Persons who possess inside information in relation to a wholesale energy product shall be prohibited from:
(a)using that information by acquiring or disposing of, or by trying to acquire or dispose of, for their own account or for the account of a third party, either directly or indirectly, wholesale energy products to which that information relates;
(b)disclosing that information to any other person unless such disclosure is made in the normal course of the exercise of their employment, profession or duties;
(c)recommending or inducing another person, on the basis of inside information, to acquire or dispose of wholesale energy products to which that information relates.
2.The prohibition set out in paragraph 1 applies to the following persons who possess inside information in relation to a wholesale energy product:
(a)members of the administrative, management or supervisory bodies of an undertaking;
(b)persons with holdings in the capital of an undertaking;
(c)persons with access to the information through the exercise of their employment, profession or duties;
(d)persons who have acquired such information through criminal activity;
(e)persons who know, or ought to know, that it is inside information.
3.Points (a) and (c) of paragraph 1 of this Article shall not apply to transmission system operators when purchasing electricity or natural gas in order to ensure the safe and secure operation of the system in accordance with their [F19obligations under any provision of a licence condition or industry code—
(a)which, immediately before IP completion day, implemented points (d) and (e) of Article 12 of Directive 2009/72/EC or points (a) and (c) of Article 13(1) of Directive 2009/73/EC; or
(b)which would, if it had existed immediately before IP completion day, have implemented any of those provisionsF19] .
4.This Article shall not apply to:
(a)transactions conducted in the discharge of an obligation that has become due to acquire or dispose of wholesale energy products where that obligation results from an agreement concluded, or an order to trade placed, before the person concerned came into possession of inside information;
(b)F20transactions entered into by electricity and natural gas producers, operators of natural gas storage facilities or operators of LNG import facilities the sole purpose of which is to cover the immediate physical loss resulting from unplanned outages, where not to do so would result in the market participant not being able to meet existing contractual obligations or where such action is undertaken in agreement with the transmission system operator(s) concerned in order to ensure safe and secure operation of the system. In such a situation, the relevant information relating to the transactions shall be reported to the ... national regulatory authority. This reporting obligation is without prejudice to the obligation set out in Article 4(1);
(c)market participants acting under national emergency rules, where national authorities have intervened in order to secure the supply of electricity or natural gas and market mechanisms have been suspended in [F21the United KingdomF21] or parts thereof. In this case the authority competent for emergency planning shall ensure publication in accordance with Article 4.
5.Where the person who possesses inside information in relation to a wholesale energy product is a legal person, the prohibitions laid down in paragraph 1 shall also apply to the natural persons who take part in the decision to carry out the transaction for the account of the legal person concerned.
6.When information is disseminated for the purposes of journalism or artistic expression such dissemination of information shall be assessed taking into account the rules governing the freedom of the press and freedom of expression in other media, unless:
(a)those persons derive, directly or indirectly, an advantage or profits from the dissemination of the information in question; or
(b)the disclosure or dissemination is made with the intention of misleading the market as to the supply of, demand for, or price of wholesale energy products.
Article 4 Obligation to publish inside information
1.Market participants shall publicly disclose in an effective and timely manner inside information which they possess in respect of business or facilities which the market participant concerned, or its parent undertaking or related undertaking, owns or controls or for whose operational matters that market participant or undertaking is responsible, either in whole or in part. Such disclosure shall include information relevant to the capacity and use of facilities for production, storage, consumption or transmission of electricity or natural gas or related to the capacity and use of LNG facilities, including planned or unplanned unavailability of these facilities.
2.F22A market participant may under its own responsibility exceptionally delay the public disclosure of inside information so as not to prejudice its legitimate interests provided that such omission is not likely to mislead the public and provided that the market participant is able to ensure the confidentiality of that information and does not make decisions relating to trading in wholesale energy products based upon that information. In such a situation the market participant shall without delay provide that information, together with a justification for the delay of the public disclosure, to the ... national regulatory authority having regard to Article 8(5).
3.Whenever a market participant or a person employed by, or acting on behalf of, a market participant discloses inside information in relation to a wholesale energy product in the normal exercise of his employment, profession or duties as referred to in point (b) of Article 3(1), that market participant or person shall ensure simultaneous, complete and effective public disclosure of that information. In the event of a non-intentional disclosure the market participant shall ensure complete and effective public disclosure of the information as soon as possible following the non-intentional disclosure. This paragraph shall not apply if the person receiving the information has a duty of confidentiality, regardless of whether such duty derives from law, regulation, articles of association or a contract.
[F23 4.The publication of inside information, including in aggregated form, in accordance with:
(a)guidelines and network codes adopted pursuant to Regulation (EC) No 714/2009 before 1 January 2020; or
(b)the Electricity Regulation or the Gas Regulation, or guidelines and network codes adopted, or regulations made, pursuant to those Regulations,
constitutes simultaneous, complete and effective public disclosure.F23]
5.Where an exemption from the obligation to publish certain data has been granted to a transmission system operator, in accordance with [F24the Electricity Regulation or the Gas RegulationF24] , that operator is thereby also exempted from the obligation set out in paragraph 1 of this Article in respect of that data.
6.Paragraphs 1 and 2 are without prejudice to [F25the EU-derived obligations of market participantsF25] , in particular regarding the timing and method of publication of information.
[F26 6A. In paragraph 6, “ EU-derived obligations ” means obligations under—
(a)any legislation, licence condition or industry code which, immediately before IP completion day, implemented Directive 2009/72/EC or 2009/73/EC;
(b)the Electricity Regulation or the Gas Regulation;
(c)any network codes or guidelines adopted, or regulations made, under the Electricity Regulation or the Gas Regulation; or
(d)any network codes or guidelines adopted under Regulation (EC) No 714/2009 before 1 January 2020.F26]
7.Paragraphs 1 and 2 are without prejudice to the right of market participants to delay the disclosure of sensitive information relating to the protection of critical infrastructure as provided for in point (d) of Article 2 of Council Directive 2008/114/EC of 8 December 2008 on the identification and designation of European critical infrastructures and the assessment of the need to improve their protection(10), if it is classified in [F27the United KingdomF27] .
[F28 For the purposes of this paragraph, Article 2 of Council Directive 2008/114/EC is to be read as if, in point (a), the references to ‘Member States’ and ‘a Member State’ were references to the United Kingdom. F28]
Article 5 Prohibition of market manipulation
Any engagement in, or attempt to engage in, market manipulation on wholesale energy markets shall be prohibited.
Article 6 Technical updating of definitions of inside information and market manipulation
1.[F29 A national authority may, by regulations, amend this RegulationF29] in order to:
(a)F30align the definitions set out in points (1), (2), (3) and (5) of Article 2 for the purpose of ensuring coherence with other relevant ... legislation in the fields of financial services and energy; and
(b)update those definitions for the sole purpose of taking into account future developments on wholesale energy markets.
2.The [F31regulationsF31] referred to in paragraph 1 shall take into account at least:
(a)the specific functioning of wholesale energy markets, including the specificities of electricity and gas markets, and the interaction between commodity markets and derivative markets;
(b)the potential for manipulation across borders, between electricity and gas markets and across commodity markets and derivative markets;
(c)the potential impact on wholesale energy market prices of actual or planned production, consumption, use of transmission, or use of storage capacity; and
[F32 (d)network codes and framework guidelines adopted in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 714/2009 before 1 January 2020 and network codes and framework guidelines adopted, or regulations made, under the Gas Regulation and Electricity Regulation.F32]
Article 7 Market monitoring
1.[F33 The national regulatory authorityF33] shall monitor trading activity in wholesale energy products to detect and prevent trading based on inside information and market manipulation. It shall collect the data for assessing and monitoring wholesale energy markets as provided for in Article 8.
[F34 2.The GB Authority and the NI Authority must, where appropriate, cooperate with each other in carrying out the monitoring of wholesale energy markets referred to in paragraph 1.F34]
F353.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Article 8 Data collection
1.[F36 To the extent required by Chapter II of the REMIT Implementing Regulation, market participantsF36] , or a person or authority listed in points (b) to (f) of paragraph 4 on their behalf, shall provide [F37the national regulatory authorityF37] with a record of wholesale energy market transactions, including orders to trade. The information reported shall include the precise identification of the wholesale energy products bought and sold, the price and quantity agreed, the dates and times of execution, the parties to the transaction and the beneficiaries of the transaction and any other relevant information. While overall responsibility lies with market participants, once the required information is received from a person or authority listed in points (b) to (f) of paragraph 4, the reporting obligation on the market participant in question shall be considered to be fulfilled.
2.[F38 A national authority may, by regulationsF38] :
(a)draw up a list of the contracts and derivatives, including orders to trade, which are to be reported in accordance with paragraph 1 and appropriate de minimis thresholds for the reporting of transactions where appropriate;
(b)adopt uniform rules on the reporting of information which is to be provided in accordance with paragraph 1;
(c)lay down the timing and form in which that information is to be reported.
F39... [F40Regulations under this paragraphF40] shall take account of existing reporting systems.
3.Persons referred to in points (a) to (d) of paragraph 4 who have reported transactions in accordance with [F41relevant law on markets in financial instrumentsF41] or applicable [[F42,F43 assimilatedF43] lawF42] on derivative transactions, central counterparties and trade repositories shall not be subject to double reporting obligations relating to those transactions.
Without prejudice to the first subparagraph of this paragraph, [F44regulations underF44] paragraph 2 may allow organised markets and trade matching or trade reporting systems to provide [F45the national regulatory authorityF45] with records of wholesale energy transactions.
4.For the purposes of paragraph 1, information shall be provided by:
(a)the market participant;
(b)a third party acting on behalf of the market participant;
(c)a trade reporting system;
(d)an organised market, a trade-matching system or other person professionally arranging transactions;
(e)a trade repository registered or recognised under applicable [[F46,F47 assimilatedF47] lawF46] on derivative transactions, central counterparties and trade repositories; or
(f)a competent authority which has received that information in accordance with [F48Article 26(1) and (2) of Regulation (EU) No 600/2014F48] .
5.[F49 To the extent required by Chapter III of the REMIT Implementing Regulation, market participantsF49] shall provide [F50the national regulatory authorityF50] with information related to the capacity and use of facilities for production, storage, consumption or transmission of electricity or natural gas or related to the capacity and use of LNG facilities, including planned or unplanned unavailability of these facilities, for the purpose of monitoring trading in wholesale energy markets. The reporting obligations on market participants shall be minimised by collecting the required information or parts thereof from existing sources where possible.
6.[F51 A national authority may, by regulationsF51] :
(a)adopt uniform rules on the reporting of information to be provided in accordance with paragraph 5 and on appropriate thresholds for such reporting where appropriate;
(b)lay down the timing and form in which that information is to be reported.
F52... [F53Regulations under this paragraph shall take account of existing reporting obligations under the Gas Regulation and Electricity Regulation.F53]
[F54 7.The powers to make regulations under paragraphs 2 and 6 include power to amend or replace any provision of an implementing act which—
(a)was made by the Commission under those paragraphs as they applied before IP completion day; and
(b)is [F55 assimilated directF55] legislation.F54]
Article 9 Registration of market participants
1.Market participants entering into [F56reportable transactionsF56] shall register with the national regulatory authority in [F57each part of the United KingdomF57] in which they are active. [F58For this purpose—
(a) “ part of the United Kingdom ” means Great Britain or Northern Ireland; and
(b)all market participants entering into transactions in the SEM are to be treated as being active in Northern Ireland.F58]
[F59 A market participant entering into reportable transactions which relate, or might relate, to the trading or transportation of electricity between Great Britain and the SEM must register with both the GB Authority and the NI Authority.F59]
The registration of market participants is without prejudice to obligations to comply with applicable trading and balancing rules.
[F60 1A.The GB Authority may direct that the obligation in paragraph 1 to register with it does not apply to market participants which are already registered with the NI Authority, or with a national regulatory authority of a member State under this Regulation as it applies in EU law.
1B.The NI Authority may direct that the obligation in paragraph 1 to register with it does not apply to market participants which are already registered with the GB Authority, or with a national regulatory authority of a member State under this Regulation as it applies in EU law.
1C.A direction under paragraph 1A or 1B—
(a)may have effect generally or in specified cases;
(b)may be made for a specified period; and
(c)may be varied or cancelled by the national regulatory authority which made the direction.F60]
2.[F61 The GB Authority and the NI Authority must each establish a registerF61] of market participants which they shall keep up to date. The register shall give each market participant a unique identifier and shall contain sufficient information to identify the market participant, including relevant details relating to its value added tax number, its place of establishment, the persons responsible for its operational and trading decisions, and the ultimate controller or beneficiary of the market participant's trading activities.
F623.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
4.Market participants referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article shall submit the registration form to the national regulatory authority prior to entering into [F63a reportable transactionF63] .
5.Market participants referred to in paragraph 1 shall communicate promptly to the national regulatory authority any change which has taken place as regards the information provided in the registration form.
[F64 6. For the purposes of this Article, “ reportable transaction ” means a transaction which is required to be reported to the national regulatory authority under Article 8(1), or which would be required to be reported if the national regulatory authority had established a data reporting system under Article 10A of the REMIT Implementing Regulation. F64]
F65Article 10 Sharing of information between the Agency and other authorities
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
[F66Article 11 Data protection
This Regulation shall be without prejudice to the obligations of public authorities relating to processing of personal data under [F67 assimilatedF67] law.F66]
Article 12 Operational reliability
1.F68...
F70[F69 The national regulatory authority, the FCA, the CMAF69] and other relevant authorities shall ensure the confidentiality, integrity and protection of the information which they receive pursuant to Articles 4(2), 7(2) or 8(5) ... and shall take steps to prevent any misuse of such information.
F71...
2.Subject to Article 17, [F72the national regulatory authorityF72] may decide to make publicly available parts of the information which it possesses, provided that commercially sensitive information on individual market participants or individual transactions or individual market places are not disclosed and cannot be inferred.
F73...
Information shall be published or made available in the interest of improving transparency of wholesale energy markets and provided it is not likely to create any distortion in competition on those energy markets.
[F74 The national regulatory authorityF74] shall disseminate information in a fair manner according to transparent rules which it shall draw up and make publicly available.
Article 13 Implementation of prohibitions against market abuse
1.[F75 The national regulatory authority mustF75] ensure that the prohibitions set out in Articles 3 and 5 and the obligation set out in Article 4 are applied.
[F76 The national regulatory authority must exercise its investigatory and enforcement powers in a proportionate manner.F76]
Those powers may be exercised:
(a)directly;
(b)in collaboration with other authorities; or
(c)by application to the competent judicial authorities.
Where appropriate, [F77the national regulatory authority may exercise itsF77] investigatory powers in collaboration with organised markets, trade-matching systems or other persons professionally arranging transactions as referred to in point (d) of Article 8(4).
F782.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
F79Article 14 Right of appeal
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Article 15 Obligations of persons professionally arranging transactions
Any person professionally arranging transactions in wholesale energy products who reasonably suspects that a transaction might breach Article 3 or 5 shall notify the national regulatory authority without further delay.
Persons professionally arranging transactions in wholesale energy products shall establish and maintain effective arrangements and procedures to identify breaches of Article 3 or 5.
Article 16 F80Cooperation ...
1.F81...
[F82 The GB Authority and the NI Authority must cooperate with each other, and may, if they consider it expedient to do so, cooperate with the Agency and national regulatory authorities of member StatesF82] , for the purpose of carrying out their duties in accordance with this Regulation.
[F83 The national regulatory authority, the FCA and the CMAF83] may establish appropriate forms of cooperation in order to ensure effective and efficient investigation and enforcement and to contribute to a coherent and consistent approach to investigation, judicial proceedings and to the enforcement of this Regulation and relevant financial and competition law.
2.F84...
Where [F85the nationalF85] regulatory authority suspects that acts which affect wholesale energy markets or the price of wholesale energy products in [F86the United KingdomF86] are being carried out in [F87a memberF87] State, it may request the Agency to take action in accordance with paragraph 4 of this Article [F88(as it applies in EU law)F88] and, if the acts affect [F89relevant financial instrumentsF89] , in accordance with paragraph 3 of this Article [F88(as it applies in EU law)F88] .
3.In order to ensure a coordinated and consistent approach to market abuse on wholesale energy markets:
(a)[F90 the national regulatory authority must inform the FCA where it hasF90] reasonable grounds to suspect that acts are being, or have been, carried out on wholesale energy markets which constitute market abuse within the meaning of [F91the Market Abuse Regulation and which affect relevant financial instrumentsF91] ;
F92(b). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
F93(c). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(d)[F94 the national regulatory authority must inform the CMA where it hasF94] reasonable grounds to suspect that acts are being, or have been, carried out on wholesale energy market which are likely to constitute a breach of competition law.
F954.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
F955.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
F956.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Article 17 Professional secrecy
1.Any confidential information received, exchanged or transmitted pursuant to this Regulation shall be subject to the conditions of professional secrecy laid down in paragraphs 2, 3 and 4.
2.The obligation of professional secrecy shall apply to:
F96(a). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
F97(b). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(c)persons who work or who have worked for the [F98national regulatory authorityF98] or for other relevant authorities;
(d)auditors and experts instructed by [F99national regulatory authorityF99] or by other relevant authorities who receive confidential information in accordance with this Regulation.
3.Confidential information received by the persons referred to in paragraph 2 in the course of their duties may not be divulged to any other person or authority, except in summary or aggregate form such that an individual market participant or market place cannot be identified, without prejudice to cases covered by criminal law, the other provisions of this Regulation or other relevant [[F100,F101 assimilatedF101] lawF100] .
F1024.Without prejudice to cases covered by criminal law, [F103authoritiesF103] , bodies or persons which receive confidential information pursuant to this Regulation may use it only in the performance of their duties and for the exercise of their functions. Other authorities, bodies or persons may use that information for the purpose for which it was provided to them or in the context of administrative or judicial proceedings specifically related to the exercise of those functions. The authority receiving the information may use it for other purposes, provided that the Agency, national regulatory authorities, competent financial authorities of the Member States, ESMA, bodies or persons communicating information consent thereto.
5.F104This Article shall not prevent an authority ... from exchanging or transmitting, in accordance with national law, confidential information provided that it has not been received from an authority of [F105a memberF105] State or from the Agency under this Regulation [F106as it applies in EU lawF106] .
F107Article 18 Penalties
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
F108Article 19 International relations
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
F109Article 20 Exercise of the delegation
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
F110Article 21 Committee procedure
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
[F111Article 21A Regulations made by the Secretary of State
1.Any power to make regulations conferred on the Secretary of State by this Regulation is exercisable by statutory instrument.
2.Such regulations may—
(a)include supplementary, incidental, consequential, transitional, transitory or saving provision; and
(b)make different provision for different cases.
3.Before the Secretary of State makes regulations which apply to Northern Ireland, the Secretary of State must consult the Northern Ireland department.
4.A statutory instrument containing regulations made under this Regulation is subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.F111]
[F111Article 21B Regulations made by the Northern Ireland department
1.Any power to make regulations conferred on the Northern Ireland department by this Regulation is exercisable by statutory rule for the purpose of the Statutory Rules (Northern Ireland) Order 1979.
2.Such regulations may—
(a)include incidental, supplemental, consequential and transitional provision; and
(b)make different provision for different cases.
3.Statutory rules containing regulations made under this Regulation are subject to negative resolution within the meaning of section 41(6) of the Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) Act 1954 as if they were a statutory instrument within the meaning of that Act.F111]
Article 22 Entry into force
This Regulation shall enter into force on the 20th day following its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.
Paragraph 1, the first subparagraph of paragraph 3, and paragraphs 4 and 5 of Article 8 shall apply with effect from 6 months after the date on which the Commission adopts the relevant implementing acts referred to in paragraphs 2 and 6 of that Article.
F112 ...
Done at Strasbourg, 25 October 2011.
For the European Parliament
The President
J. Buzek
For the Council
The President
M. Dowgielewicz
COMMISSION STATEMENT
The Commission considers that the thresholds for reporting transactions within the meaning of Article 8(2)(a) and information within the meaning of Article 8(6)(a) cannot be set through implementing acts.
Where appropriate the Commission will come forward with a legislative proposal to set such thresholds.
COUNCIL STATEMENT
The EU legislator has conferred on the Commission implementing powers in accordance with Article 291 TFEU in relation to measures foreseen in Article 8. That is legally binding for the Commission despite the declaration it made in respect to Article 8(2)(a) and Article 8(6)(a).
OJ C 132, 3.5.2011, p. 108.
Position of the European Parliament of 14 September 2011 (not yet published in the Official Journal) and Decision of the Council of 10 October 2011.
OJ L 211, 14.8.2009, p. 15.
OJ L 211, 14.8.2009, p. 36.
OJ L 96, 12.4.2003, p. 16.
OJ L 211, 14.8.2009, p. 1.
OJ L 55, 28.2.2011, p. 13.
OJ L 145, 30.4.2004, p. 1.
OJ L 331, 15.12.2010, p. 84.
OJ L 345, 23.12.2008, p. 75.
OJ C 132, 3.5.2011, p. 108.
Position of the European Parliament of 14 September 2011 (not yet published in the Official Journal) and Decision of the Council of 10 October 2011.
OJ L 211, 14.8.2009, p. 15.
OJ L 211, 14.8.2009, p. 36.
OJ L 96, 12.4.2003, p. 16.
OJ L 211, 14.8.2009, p. 1.
OJ L 55, 28.2.2011, p. 13.
OJ L 145, 30.4.2004, p. 1.
OJ L 331, 15.12.2010, p. 84.
OJ L 345, 23.12.2008, p. 75.