EU AND CZECH LEGISLATION

On 16 September 2020, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, sent a letter of intent to the President of the European Parliament, David Sassoli, and to Chancellor Angela Merkel, as President of the Council, outlining the measures the Commission intends to take in 2021, including a revision of the Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Directive. The Commission's work programme for 2021 foresaw the publication of the proposal in the second quarter of 2021.

The 2014 Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Directive required EU countries to develop National Policy Frameworks (NPFs) for the development of publicly accessible refuelling and recharging points for alternative fuel vehicles and vessels. The Directive aims to improve coordination of alternative fuel infrastructure development to ensure the long-term security needed for investment in alternative fuel technologies and alternative fuel vehicles.

On 14 July 2021, the European Commission presented a package of proposals to ensure that EU policies on climate, energy, land use, transport and taxation are fit for purpose to reduce net greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030 compared to 1990 levels, known as the Fit for 55 package. This package aims to reduce net greenhouse gas emissions in the EU by 2030. The package included a proposal to revise the 2014 Directive on alternative fuel infrastructure. The Commission proposed to repeal the Directive and replace it with a Regulation, arguing that the change in instrument was necessary to ensure "rapid and coherent development" of the infrastructure network across the EU.

In the proposal, the Commission has set a series of binding national targets for the deployment of alternative fuel infrastructure in the EU for road vehicles, vessels and stationary aircraft.

For publicly available battery electric charging infrastructure for light road vehicles (cars and vans), the draft Regulation set binding national targets based on the vehicle fleet (e.g. for each battery electric light vehicle, a total capacity of at least 1 kW should be provided through publicly available charging stations (a charging station is defined as a single physical facility at a specific location consisting of one or more charging points). It also set distance-based targets for light and heavy road vehicles on the TEN-T core and global network (e.g. publicly accessible charging stations (one or more charging points) for light vehicles should be located in each direction of travel with a maximum distance between them of 60 km). It also required EU Member States to provide a range of charging stations for heavy goods vehicles in urban nodes.

In the case of hydrogen, the proposal called for publicly accessible hydrogen refuelling stations to be located at a maximum distance of 150 km along the main and global TEN-T network and for at least one to be available at each urban node.

As regards the electricity supply for vessels and fixed-wing aircraft, the draft Regulation set targets for the introduction of shore-side electricity supply for certain maritime container and passenger ships in seaports and inland waterway vessels and for the electricity supply of fixed-wing aircraft at airports on the TEN-T core and global network.

In Parliament, the file had been referred to the Committee on Transport and Tourism (TRAN). The rapporteur was Ismail Ertug (S&D, Germany).

The first discussion in TRAN took place on 1 December 2021. The Slovenian Presidency's progress report was discussed at the Transport, Telecommunications and Energy Council on 9 December 2021.

The draft report was published on 14 February 2022 and submitted to the TRAN Committee on 14 March 2022. It contains several amendments to strengthen the provisions proposed by the Commission. The deadline for tabling amendments in the TRAN Committee was set for 18 March 2022.

On 2 June 2022, the Council adopted its general approach, its position for negotiations with Parliament on the final text of the new rules. On 19 October, Parliament adopted its position for the interinstitutional negotiations. The Parliament's position advocated, among other things, that by 2026 there should be at least one charging station for electric vehicles every 60 km along the TEN-T road network and by 2028 every 100 km of hydrogen refuelling stations along major EU roads.

Council and Parliament negotiators reached a preliminary agreement on the new rules on 28 March 2023. They now need to be formally approved by both institutions.

The Parliament's Transport and Tourism Committee approved the agreement on 24 May 2023 and the Parliament's plenary approved the new rules on 11 July 2023. The Council approved the text on 25 July 2023. The final act was signed on 13 September 2023 and published in the Official Journal of the EU on 22 September 2023.

Regulation 2023/2023 was published in the Official Journal of the European Union in 2023:

  • EP Legislative Observatory, file on the progress of the deployment of alternative fuel infrastructure. "Fit for 55 package", 2021/0223(COD)

  • European Commission, Proposal for a Regulation on the deployment of alternative fuels infrastructure, COM(2021) 559.

  • European Commission, European Green Deal: Commission proposes a transformation of EU economy and society to meet climate ambition, press release, 14 July 2021.

  • European Parliament, Resolution on the deployment of alternative fuels infrastructure in the European Union: time to act, 2018/2023(INI)

  • Directive 2014/94/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 October 2014 on the deployment of alternative fuels infrastructure.

  • European Parliament, Committee on Transport and Tourism, draft report on the proposal for a regulation on the deployment of alternative fuels infrastructure, 2021/0223(COD)

  • Council, Fit for 55 package: Council adopts position on three texts concerning the transport sector, press release, 2 June 2022

  • European Parliament, Car charging stations should be available every 60 km, MEPs say, Press release, 19 October 2022.

  • European Parliament, MEPs adopt new rules for more charging stations and greener marine fuels, press release, 11 July 2023

  • Council, Alternative fuels infrastructure: Council adopts new legislation for more charging and refuelling stations across Europe, press release, 25 July 2023

  • Regulation (EU) 2023/1804 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 September 2023 on the deployment of infrastructure for alternative fuels.

Further reading:

  • European Parliament, EPRS, Deployment of alternative fuel infrastructure: Fit for 55 package, Briefing, November 2021 (updated March 2022).

  • European Parliament, EPRS, Infrastructure and fleets for alternative fuel vehicles: State of play,Briefing, November 2021