ACER highlights the need for greater clarity in the proposed Swedish gas transmission tariff
ACER highlights the need for greater clarity in the proposed Swedish gas transmission tariff
What is it about?
Today, ACER releases its report on the Swedish gas transmission tariff directed at the Swedish National Regulatory Authority (NRA), Energimarknadsinspektionen (Ei), and Transmission System Operator, Swedegas.
The report assesses whether the proposed Reference Price Methodology (RPM) complies with the requirements of the Network Code on Harmonised Transmission Tariff structures (NC TAR).
What are the key findings?
After analysing the consultation document, ACER concludes that:
Most of the required information is provided, however, the forecasted contracted capacity, tariff comparison between periods, and detailed information on some non-transmission services are missing.
The input parameters of the proposed RPM do not fulfil the transparency requirements of the NC TAR. As a result, ACER concludes that the proposed RPM is not fully compliant with the transparency principle.
While the choice of the postage stamp methodology is well justified, limitations identified in the allowed revenue estimation and revenue reconciliation raise concerns about the cost reflectivity of the proposed tariff. Consequently, ACER cannot conclude that the proposed RPM complies with the cost-reflectivity principle.
The proposed RPM achieves a reasonable level of cross-subsidisation compared to the alternative capacity-weighted distance methodology while complying with the principles of non-discrimination, volume risk, and the prevention of distortions in cross-border trade.
The information provided on the three non-transmission services (fees for extra area consumption, capacity allocation for summer and winter periods, and capacity allocation for daily capacity products) is insufficient to assess the compliance with the NC TAR principles.
What does ACER recommend?
ACER recommends that the NRA, when adopting its decision:
Includes the missing elements and clarifies inconsistencies in the calculation of input parameters for the tariff-setting process, ensuring stakeholders fully understand the methodology.
Specifies the start of the regulatory period for the proposed RPM and the applicability of the consulted tariff.
Provides the missing information on the three additional non-transmission services.
ACER welcomes the steps taken by the NRA to realign the allowed revenue with Article 17 of Renewable Gas, Natural Gas and Hydrogen Regulation, ensuring it reflects the TSO’s actual costs, as long as they correspond to those of an efficient and structurally comparable network operator.
Additionally, ACER appreciates that the TSO and NRA followed its recommendation in the 2024 tariff report and conducted another consultation on the applied methodology.
See all ACER reports on the national tariff consultation documents.