Today, ACER hosted the Ukrainian energy regulator, NEURC, for a closed workshop on regulatory issues.

ACER Director, Christian Pilgaard Zinglersen, welcomed Mr Yuriy Vlasenko, NEURC Chairman, and Mr Oleksandr Formagei, Commissioner at NEURC, to ACER’s headquarters in Ljubljana, Slovenia.

The regulatory discussion focused on 3 energy issues:

• Ukraine’s integration into the EU electricity market;
• gas market developments and challenges; and
• implementation of REMIT (the EU framework that seeks to prevent market manipulation and abuse on wholesale energy markets) in Ukraine.

The Ukrainian regulator also spoke to the extensive damage done to energy infrastructure by Russian attacks - this making their simultaneous commitment to enact EU regulatory reforms all the more impressive.

The area of energy remains a key focus area, both during the current war in Ukraine and for post-war economic recovery. In February this year, the European Commission committed to Ukraine’s accelerated EU membership with a new package of support for energy security and Ukraine’s EU energy market integration.

Earlier this week, in Brussels, Ukraine completed its pre-accession screening process with the European Commission on energy issues and trans-European networks. This marks a key milestone of Ukraine’s fast-track path to EU membership.

Meanwhile this week, in Rome, at the Ukraine Recovery Conference, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen unveiled a new €2.3 billion package of agreements with international and bilateral public financial institutions to support Ukraine's recovery and reconstruction efforts. The conference pointed to strengthening Ukrainian institutions and promoting long-term sustainability.

ACER’s workshop today in Ljubljana, technical in nature and focused on core energy regulatory issues, is yet another example of the EU’s steadfast commitment to Ukraine's future in the EU. It follows ACER’s recent visit (in May) to Kyiv and an earlier ACER workshop dedicated to NEURC in October 2023.

NEURC called for further collaboration with ACER to strengthen its capacity and help get ready for its EU-based future.

ACER Director, Christian Zinglersen, confirmed “ACER is fully committed to collaborate with our Ukrainian colleagues as they accelerate regulatory reforms and enhance their human, technical and IT capacities. We all know the end destination (EU membership) and ACER wants to do its bit to enable this sooner rather than later."

Following a consultation process launched in March 2025, ACER has concluded that implementing peak-shaving products in the EU electricity market under normal conditions would bring more challenges than advantages.  

What are peak-shaving products?

Peak-shaving products are market-based tools that enable market participants to reduce their electricity consumption (during peak demand periods) in exchange for compensation.

Under the 2024 Electricity Market Design (EMD) Regulation, the Council of the EU can declare a regional or EU-wide crisis if wholesale electricity prices become excessively high. In such cases, Member States can direct system operators to use peak-shaving products to reduce power demand, helping stabilise the grid and lower prices.

Why an ACER assessment?

The EMD Regulation mandates ACER to assess the potential impact of developing peak-shaving products on Europe’s electricity market under normal (e.g. non-crisis) conditions. ACER’s assessment evaluates whether these products can be introduced without disrupting the normal functioning of electricity markets or redirecting demand response services towards peak-shaving products.

To strengthen its assessment, ACER engaged with more than 40 stakeholders, including through an Expert Group and a public consultation (spring 2025). 

What are ACER’s conclusions?

ACER’s assessment shows that the drawbacks of introducing peak-shaving products in the EU electricity market under normal conditions outweigh the potential benefits. Therefore, ACER does not recommend amending the existing legal framework to allow their use outside of electricity price crisis situations. Key concerns identified include:

• reduced overall socio-economic benefits;
• distorted cross-border competition; and
• weakened investment incentives for market-based demand response and flexibility.

In its assessment, ACER also provides recommendations to support Members States in implementing peak-shaving products during electricity price crises. These recommendations aim to enhance the products’ effectiveness and minimise any unintended consequences.

What’s next?

Based on ACER’s assessment, the European Commission will decide whether to propose amendments to the Electricity Regulation to allow peak-shaving products outside of electricity price crisis situations.

ACER publishes its Opinion on the Summer Supply Outlook 2025 prepared by the European Network of Transmission System Operators for Gas (ENTSOG).

The Summer Outlook evaluates the ability of the EU’s gas system to meet demand and handle storage injections during the upcoming summer and winter seasons.

The expected gas demand and supply projections are modelled under a reference scenario, which is complemented with various challenges to the gas system (such as cold winters and disruptions in Russian gas supply). 

What are the 2025 Summer Outlook’s main highlights?

The Outlook examines the EU’s dependence on Russian gas supply:

• In all scenarios, gas imports via the TurkStream pipeline (running from Russia to Turkey) are minimised.
• Two additional Russian gas disruption scenarios are modelled: a complete disruption of TurkStream and a 20% reduction of liquefied natural gas (LNG) supply.

In all scenarios, the Outlook concludes that the current European gas infrastructure is adequate to ensure security of gas supply.

These scenarios broadly align with the recent proposal by the European Commission to coordinate a gradual phase-out of Russian gas imports by stopping existing spot contracts by mid-2026, with the aim of ending all remaining gas imports by the end of 2027.

What’s in the ACER Opinion?

ACER welcomes the timely publication of ENTSOG’s Summer Outlook (April 2025), the modelling updates to reflect recent changes in infrastructure (e.g. new LNG terminals and cross-border capacities) and to cover the potential EU gas transit via Ukraine. ACER also suggests further improvements to the Outlook’s future editions:

• Include a gradual phase-out of Russian gas supply in a sensitivity scenario, reflecting the roadmap of the European Commission.
• Focus on LNG import trends, as the increasing global LNG market expansion is influenced by geopolitical instabilities (e.g. the current conflict in Iran may impact gas supply and price due to the country’s strategic location for energy exports).
• Review transmission system operators’ demand estimates by comparing them with past demand, political and economic trends, as well as with third-party projections.
• Explore the impact of gas prices on gas supply and storage filling, as it may alter the typical supply pattern. This would provide a more realistic assessment of the gas system in the coming year.

ACER publishes a new report and updates its interactive dashboard to showcase main gas balancing trends in the EU for the 2023-2024 gas year. 

Keeping Europe’s gas systems balanced efficiently

The Gas Balancing Network Code establishes market-based rules to ensure efficient balancing of gas supply and demand in European gas balancing zones. For example, it establishes rules that enable and incentivise network users to balance their positions. It also promotes the development of short-term markets by prioritising the use of standard wholesale products when transmission system operators (TSOs) need to manage any remaining system imbalances.

What’s the role of ACER?

Each year, ACER analyses data collected by the European Network for Transmission System Operators for Gas (ENTSOG) to monitor the implementation and effects of the Gas Balancing Network Code across Member States, focusing on:

• TSOs’ balancing activities;
• network users’ imbalances;
• neutrality (i.e. the cost or revenue generated by the balancing regime).

What does ACER monitoring show? 

• TSOs’ balancing actions have declined across most EU gas balancing zones: These interventions accounted for a decreasing share of the physical gas market at EU level.
• The changing gas market may be reducing the need for balancing. Lower gas consumption and a smaller physical market may have reduced the need for TSOs to actively balance the system. At the same time, higher gas prices may further incentivise users to stay in balance and avoid charges.

What does ACER recommend? 

ACER encourages national regulatory authorities to:

• Periodically review the performance of their balancing regimes and assess whether their design should be refined or revised.
• Ensure that incentives for commercial balancing are adequate and explore enhancements to information systems to facilitate network users’ participation.

ACER monitoring, together with market participants’ views (identified through public consultations) and regional cooperation can support regulators in these processes.

ACER is establishing a new European Stakeholder Group on demand response in the electricity sector. We invite associations that could offer a pan-European perspective on electricity markets to join. 

What’s the background?

On 7 March 2025, ACER submitted its proposal for a new EU-wide network code on demand response to the European Commission, in line with its framework guideline.

ACER’s proposal sets out common rules to ensure that demand response resources (such as consumers, storage providers and distributed generation) can fully participate in wholesale electricity markets, providing flexibility to the grid.

To support the implementation of these rules, ACER committed to coordinating stakeholder engagement on demand response topics by establishing a new dedicated European Stakeholder Group.

What will the demand response group do? 

The Demand Response European Stakeholder Group (DRESG) will act as an EU-level platform where ACER, the European Network of Transmission System Operators for Electricity (ENTSO-E) and the EU Distribution System Operators Entity (EU DSO Entity) engage with stakeholders on key matters of demand response. The group will focus on:

• discussing proposals for terms and conditions or methodologies required by the new network code;
• addressing broader issues related to demand response; and
• supporting the practical implementation of the network code.

Through this new stakeholder group, participating associations will:

• Monitor the implementation progress of the code, including how newly established processes function at local, regional and EU level.
• Share views and feedback on the code’s implementation, ensuring stakeholder input is taken into account.
• Support more informed decision-making on the methodologies and rules to be developed under the code.

By doing so, the group will support the flexibility required by the EU electricity system (increasingly powered by renewable energy), strengthening energy security and advancing the EU’s transition to clean energy.

Who can join?

Associations that could offer pan-European views on demand response in electricity markets are encouraged to apply. Bring your insights to the table and ensure that your voice shapes the future of demand response!

Deadline to apply is 15 August 2025, with the first meeting planned for October 2025. See how to apply.

See the Terms of reference for the demand response stakeholder group.

ACER publishes today its Consolidated Annual Activity Report for 2024, which details the Agency’s regulatory activities in relation to:

• the ongoing integration of Europe’s electricity and gas markets;
• market surveillance under the Regulation on Wholesale Energy Market Integrity and Transparency (REMIT) and its revision (May 2024).

The report assesses the extent to which ACER met the objectives of its 2024 work programme and addresses internal management and governance matters. It was adopted by ACER's Administrative Board on 6 June 2025, following approval by ACER's Board of Regulators.

What were the main developments in 2024?

Electricity markets:

• The process to develop a recommendation for the EU network-code on demand response was initiated (concluded in March 2025). The network code aims to empower consumers and aggregators and provide more flexibility to the EU electricity system.
• A joint ACER-CEER paper (June 2024) was published, identifying five key challenges for the electricity system.
• Continued monitoring Member States’ delays in implementing harmonised market rules.
• A new EU-wide tool to assess system flexibility needs was procured.

Security of supply and adequacy:

• The European Resource Adequacy Assessment (ERAA) 2023 was adopted. For the first time since 2020, the comprehensive EU-wide adequacy assessment (which identifies potential capacity gaps through 2024) was approved.
• ACER monitoring report on security of EU electricity supply was published, comparing national and EU-level adequacy calculations to inform capacity-mechanism decisions.

Gas monitoring and infrastructure:

• Quarterly gas monitoring reports and a dedicated LNG outlook were released, analysing price trends, volatility drivers and supply flows.
• Expert advice was offered to the European Commission on the revised network code for capacity allocation mechanisms, aimed at aligning tariffs with wider decarbonisation and flexibility goals.
• Joint work with CEER on an EU-wide electricity infrastructure report.

Hydrogen market:

• ACER’s first hydrogen market monitoring report was published in November 2024, assessing regulatory frameworks, supply and demand forecasts and infrastructure needs.
• ACER provided its Opinion on the legal setup of the European Network of Network Operators for Hydrogen (ENNOH).

REMIT enforcement and market surveillance:

• Approximately 12 billion transaction records were processed from 106 reporting parties. Coordination of national investigations resulted in fines of about €122 million.
• Continued operation of the Market Correction Mechanism (MCM) for daily EU gas reference pricing.
• A new REMIT Investigations department was established to handle cross-border abuse cases. 
• Support to the European Commission was provided in drafting REMIT II implementing acts.

Access previous editions.

On 9 May 2025, the Swedish and Lithuanian national regulatory authorities (Energy Markets Inspectorate and National Energy Regulatory Council, respectively) requested from ACER a six-month extension to jointly decide on electricity cross-zonal risk hedging opportunities.

What are cross-zonal risk hedging opportunities? 

Cross-zonal risk hedging opportunities are strategies used by electricity market participants to mitigate price volatility risks across different bidding zones. They are important to ensure the proper functioning of the EU’s wholesale electricity markets and protecting market participants from price uncertainty.

Why an ACER Decision?

In accordance with the Forward Capacity Allocation network code, the Swedish and Lithuanian national regulators tasked transmission system operators to propose alternative measures to improve cross-zonal hedging opportunities in the Lithuanian bidding zone. 

The Swedish and Lithuanian transmission system operators submitted a joint proposal to their national regulators, but it contained some ambiguities. 

Therefore, both regulators requested ACER additional time to assess the system operators’ proposal. According to the ACER Regulation, ACER is mandated to grant this extension.

ACER intends to act promptly on this request, aiming to reach a decision by the end of September 2025.

ACER and the national regulatory authorities of Austria, Germany and the Netherlands have closed the cross-border investigatory group established in 2022.

This group was set up under REMIT (the EU framework to prevent energy market abuse, ensuring transparency and integrity) in response to the exceptional conditions during the energy crisis – unprecedented high prices, high volatility, and scarce electricity and gas supplies – to enhance monitoring and detection of potential market abuse.

The group aimed to strengthen coordination and support evidence gathering in a complex case involving multiple potential REMIT breaches in the wholesale gas market.

The case spanned several countries. ACER initiated the process by sharing a preliminary report with the relevant regulators, based on suspicious patterns flagged during its EU-wide market surveillance. The national regulatory authorities of Austria, Germany and the Netherlands have worked closely together in their investigatory activities, and coordinated on which national regulatory authorities would take on the lead in a formal investigation and which ones would assist. The Dutch regulator provided assistance in the investigatory activities.    

The coordination of investigative activities and the collection of the necessary evidence have led to the following outcomes: 

• Austria: The Austrian regulator identified several potential REMIT breaches and submitted two formal investigation reports to the national enforcement authority. However, the authority decided not to pursue the case further. 

• Germany: The German regulator opened a formal investigation into another potential REMIT breach involving the same market participant. This investigation is ongoing, and cooperation will continue under a lighter, more flexible arrangement. 

As the main objectives were met (sufficient evidence was gathered to pursue the case at the national level), this group has now concluded its work. 

What happens next?

This effort underscores the importance of strong investigatory and enforcement powers at national level to uphold market integrity. ACER and national regulators continue to cooperate closely to support the effective enforcement of REMIT.

Neither ACER nor the NRAs can comment on past or ongoing REMIT investigations.

Roles of ACER and national regulators under REMIT

• ACER’s role: ACER monitors wholesale energy markets across the EU, collects data, issues guidance, and coordinates national regulatory authorities’ activities to ensure a coherent application of REMIT and an effective approach to tackling market abuse. A cross-border investigatory group is an administrative arrangement established by ACER to coordinate investigations by NRAs into a potential market abuse case under REMIT. As of May 2024, under the revised REMIT regulation, ACER can also conduct investigations into certain cross-border cases.

• National regulatory authorities: National regulators are responsible for investigating suspected cases of insider trading or market manipulation and enforcing REMIT through sanctions and remedies defined by national law.

Access the table of REMIT breach sanction decisions adopted by national regulators. 

ACER issues today its guide on benchmarking the costs and effectiveness of cybersecurity investments in the EU electricity sector.

This ACER guide is developed under the binding EU-wide network code on sector-specific rules for cybersecurity aspects of cross-border electricity flows. It aims to help national energy regulators conduct the benchmarking required by the network code.

Why is this benchmarking important?

Conducting benchmarking of cybersecurity investments will provide national regulatory authorities with an overview of:

• the costs of implementing cybersecurity controls, as well as their effectiveness and efficiency;
• prices of cybersecurity services, systems and products;
• the level of comparability of costs and functions of cybersecurity products and services. This analysis will also help identify possible opportunities to increase spending efficiency.

This will be the first EU-wide analysis on the topic.

What does ACER recommend?

ACER encourages national regulators to follow ten principles when conducting this benchmarking:

• Plan and execute benchmarking activities to ensure results can serve their intended purpose.
• Limit the scope and complexity of information to what is required by the benchmarking analysis.
• Use a consistent approach when conducting national analyses.
• Identify the stakeholders that will provide the data required by the benchmarking.
• Develop reference lists of items for the purpose of benchmarking. For example, considering assets that are relevant for Union-wide high and critical impact processes.
• Apply general accounting principles to assess the costs of benchmarked items.
• Include macroeconomic factors (e.g. inflation) in the analysis.
• Simplify how the effectiveness of investments is evaluated, considering this benchmarking assessment does not require the same level of detail as security assessments.
• Evaluate the effectiveness of cybersecurity investments following the benchmarking objectives of the network code.
• Explore different approaches for comparing the costs and functions of cybersecurity products and services.

What’s next?

From today’s publication, national regulatory authorities have one year to carry out the cybersecurity benchmarking analysis. 

ACER releases today its Opinion on the hydrogen Infrastructure Gaps Identification (IGI) report 2024. ACER welcomes the publication of this report prepared by the European Network of Transmission System Operators for Gas (ENTSOG), providing recommendations to improve the underlying methodology.

What is the hydrogen Infrastructure Gaps Identification report?

Hydrogen is expected to play a key role in achieving the EU’s climate and energy goals. However, its market is still in the early stages, with low renewable hydrogen production and consumption, and slow infrastructure buildout. High production costs and uncertain demand are hindering market development. Unlike electricity, hydrogen also lacks a well-developed transmission network, making infrastructure planning more complex and highly dependent on policy support and demand forecasts.

To address these challenges and support coordinated planning and investments, ENTSOG published the first hydrogen Infrastructure Gaps Identification report in March 2025. This report is part of the EU’s Ten-Year Network Development Plan (TYNDP) framework and aims to identify regional gaps in hydrogen infrastructure based on demand and supply projections for 2030 and 2040.

What does ACER recommend? 

While ENTSOG’s report highlights bottlenecks that could signal potential infrastructure shortages, ACER recommends improving the methodology used to better identify these gaps by: 

• Incorporating scenario variants to understand how projected infrastructure needs change under different assumptions. This would help identify the risk of investments that do not align with future hydrogen demand.

• Refining the analysis to better determine where and how much additional cross-border infrastructure capacity is needed. 

• Seeking a more cross-sectoral modelling approach to capture the interdependencies between hydrogen infrastructure and electricity systems more effectively.

What’s next?

ACER encourages ENTSOG to start testing the suggested improvements using the data currently available, without waiting for the upcoming 2026 TYNDP scenarios. Early testing can help enhance the methodology used to identify future needs, prevent delays and reinforce trust in the ensuing results.