Considerations on COM(2021)559 - Deployment of alternative fuels infrastructure - Main contents
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This page contains a limited version of this dossier in the EU Monitor.
| dossier | COM(2021)559 - Deployment of alternative fuels infrastructure. |
|---|---|
| document | COM(2021)559  |
| date | September 13, 2023 |
| (2) | Union law already set targets for renewable fuels. For example, Directive (EU) 2018/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council (5) sets a market share target of 14 % of renewables in transport fuels. |
| (3) | Regulations (EU) 2019/631 (6) and (EU) 2019/1242 (7) of the European Parliament and of the Council already set CO2 emission performance standards for new passenger cars and for new light-duty vehicles, as well as for certain new heavy-duty vehicles. Those Regulations should accelerate the uptake of, in particular, zero-emission vehicles and thereby create demand for recharging and refuelling infrastructure. It is important that Regulations (EU) 2019/631 and (EU) 2019/1242 and this Regulation ensure a coherent framework for the use and deployment of alternative fuels in road transport. |
| (4) | Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on ensuring a level playing field for sustainable air transport and Regulation (EU) 2023/1805 of the European Parliament and of the Council (8) should boost the production and uptake of sustainable alternative fuels in aviation and maritime transport. While the fuel use requirements for sustainable aviation fuels can largely rely on the existing refuelling infrastructure, investments are needed for the electricity supply of stationary aircraft. Regulation (EU) 2023/1805 sets requirements in particular for the use of on-shore power that can only be fulfilled if an adequate level of shore-side electricity supply is deployed in the trans-European transport network (TEN-T) ports. However, those Regulations do not contain any requirements concerning fuel infrastructure, although such requirements are a prerequisite for achieving the targets. |
| (5) | Therefore, all modes of transport should be addressed in a single legal act which should take into account a variety of alternative fuels. The use of zero-emission powertrain technologies is at different stages of maturity in the different modes of transport and in the different Member States. In particular, in the road sector, a rapid uptake of battery electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid vehicles is taking place. Hydrogen-powered vehicles are available on the market, as well. In addition, smaller hydrogen-powered vessels and battery electric vessels and hydrogen-powered trains are currently being deployed in different projects and in first commercial operations, with full commercial roll-out expected in the coming years. In contrast, the aviation and waterborne sectors continue to be dependent on liquid and gaseous fuels, as zero- and low-emission powertrain solutions are expected to enter the market only by approximately 2030 or even later, in particular for the aviation sector, with full commercialisation taking its time. The use of fossil gaseous or liquid fuels is only possible if it is clearly embedded into a clear decarbonisation pathway that is in line with the long-term objective of climate neutrality in the Union, requiring increasing blending with or replacement by renewable fuels such as bio-methane, advanced biofuels or renewable and low-carbon synthetic, paraffinic, gaseous and liquid fuels. |
| (6) | Such biofuels, synthetic and paraffinic fuels, substituting diesel, petrol and jet fuels, can be produced from different feedstock and can be blended into fossil fuels at very high blending ratios. Those fuels are especially important for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in the aviation and maritime transport sectors, in which electrification is expected to be slower. Those fuels are technically compatible with the current vehicle technology, with minor adaptations. Moreover, renewable methanol can, among other things, be used for inland navigation and short-sea shipping. Synthetic and paraffinic fuels have the potential to reduce the use of fossil fuel sources in the transport sector. All of those fuels can be distributed, stored and used with the existing infrastructure or, where necessary, with infrastructure of the same kind. |
| (7) | Liquefied methane is likely to continue to play a role in maritime transport, where no economically viable zero-emission powertrain technology is currently available. However, liquefied methane from fossil sources should be phased out in maritime transport as soon as possible and substituted by more sustainable alternatives. The Smart and Sustainable Mobility Strategy points to zero-emission seagoing ships becoming market ready by 2030 and projects for such ships are already underway. Fleet conversion is expected to take place gradually due to the long lifetime of seagoing ships. In contrast with the situation in maritime transport, in inland waterway transport, with normally smaller vessels and shorter distances, zero-emission powertrain technologies, such as for hydrogen and electricity, are becoming mature technologies and are therefore expected to enter the market more quickly. However, those zero-emission powertrain technologies could play an important role for maritime transport in terms of creating scale regarding zero-emission propulsion solutions. Liquefied methane is expected to no longer play a significant role in that sector. Transport fuels such as liquefied methane need increasingly to be decarbonised by blending or by being substituted with, for example, liquefied biomethane or renewable and low-carbon synthetic gaseous e-fuels (e-gas). The same infrastructure can be used for those decarbonised fuels as for fossil gaseous fuels, thereby allowing for a gradual shift towards decarbonised fuels. |
| (8) | In the heavy-duty road transport sector, technologies for liquefied methane driven trucks are fully mature. The common scenarios underpinning the Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy and the Commission Communication of 17 September 2020 entitled ‘Stepping up Europe’s 2030 climate ambition - Investing in a climate-neutral future for the benefit of our people’ (the ‘Climate Target Plan’) as well as the revised ‘Fit for 55’ package modelling scenarios suggest a limited role for gaseous fuels, that will increasingly be decarbonised in heavy-duty road transport and especially in the long-haul segment. Furthermore, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicles, for which sufficient infrastructure network already exists across the Union are expected gradually to be replaced by zero-emission powertrains and therefore only a limited targeted policy for liquefied methane infrastructure deployment that can equally supply decarbonised fuels is considered necessary to close remaining gaps in the main networks. |
| (9) | This Regulation should lay down mandatory minimum targets for the deployment of publicly accessible recharging and refuelling infrastructures for road vehicles. |
| (10) | A recharging station is a physical installation for the recharging of electric vehicles. Every recharging station has a theoretical maximum power output, expressed in kW, and has at least one recharging point that can serve only one vehicle at a time. The number of recharging points at a recharging station determines the number of vehicles that can be recharged at that station at any given time. Where more than one vehicle recharges at a recharging station at a given time, the maximum power output is distributed to the different recharging points in such a way that the power provided at each individual recharging point is lower than the power output of that recharging station. A recharging pool consists of one or more recharging stations at a specific location, including, as the case may be, the dedicated parking places adjacent to them. With regard to the targets set out in this Regulation for recharging pools, the minimum power output required for recharging pools could be provided by one or more recharging stations. |
| (11) | Publicly accessible recharging or refuelling points include, for example, privately owned recharging or refuelling points accessible to the public that are located on public or private property, such as public parking areas or parking areas of supermarkets. A recharging or refuelling point located on private property that is accessible to the public should be considered to be publicly accessible also in cases where access is restricted to a certain general group of users, for example to clients. Recharging or refuelling points for car-sharing schemes should only be considered to be publicly accessible if they explicitly allow access for third party users. Recharging or refuelling points located on private property to which access is restricted to a limited and determinate group of persons, such as parking places in an office building to which only employees or authorised persons have access, should not be considered to be publicly accessible recharging or refuelling points. |
| (12) | With a view to increasing consumer convenience, it is important that operators of publicly accessible recharging or refuelling points ensure that the opening hours of such points and uptime of their services fully meet the needs of end users. |
| (13) | The deployment of publicly accessible recharging infrastructure for light-duty electric vehicles has been uneven across the Union. The continued uneven distribution of publicly accessible recharging infrastructure would jeopardise the uptake of light-duty electric vehicles, thereby limiting connectivity across the Union. Continuing divergence in policy ambitions and approaches at national level hinders the much-needed sustainable transition of the transport sector and is not conducive to creating the long-term certainty needed for substantive market investment. Mandatory minimum targets for Member States at national level should therefore provide policy orientations and should complement national policy frameworks. That approach should combine national fleet-based targets with distance-based targets for the TEN-T. National fleet-based targets should ensure that uptake of light-duty electric vehicles in each Member State is matched by the deployment of sufficient publicly accessible recharging infrastructure. Distance-based targets for the TEN-T network should ensure full coverage of recharging points along the Union’s main road networks and thereby ensure easy and seamless travel throughout the Union. |
| (14) | National fleet-based targets should be established on the basis of the total number of electric vehicles registered in the Member State concerned. Those targets should be established on the basis of a common methodology that accounts for technological developments such as the increased driving range of electric vehicles or an increase in the number of fast recharging points, at which a greater number of electric vehicles can recharge than at a normal-power recharging point in a given period. That common methodology should also take into account the different recharging patterns of battery electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid vehicles. A methodology that sets out national fleet-based targets according to the total maximum power output of the publicly accessible recharging infrastructure would allow for flexibility in the implementation of different recharging technologies in Member States. |
| (15) | Implementation by Member States of the national fleet-based targets should ensure that a sufficient number of publicly accessible recharging points is installed in a manner that also guarantees the accessibility of recharging points in their entire territory, in particular at public transport stations, such as port passenger terminals, airports or railway stations. Deployment of those publicly accessible recharging points is particularly important in residential areas where off-street parking is scarce and in areas where, typically, vehicles are parked for extended periods of time. A sufficient number of publicly accessible fast recharging points dedicated to light-duty electric vehicles should also be deployed to increase consumer convenience, in particular, across the TEN-T network to ensure full cross-border connectivity and to enable electric vehicles to circulate throughout the Union. It is important that the deployment of publicly accessible recharging infrastructure primarily be the result of private market investment. However, Member States should, subject to Union State aid rules, be able to support the deployment of the necessary publicly accessible recharging infrastructure in cases where, due to market conditions, public support is needed before a fully competitive market is established. |
| (16) | Depending on the specific circumstances in a Member State, the requirements in terms of the level of fixed total power output to be provided through publicly accessible recharging stations for each light-duty battery electric vehicle registered in that Member State might no longer be justified where those requirements could have adverse effects by discouraging private investments or, in particular, by resulting in oversupply in the medium term. The risk of such adverse effects could arise due to the installation of a high number of private recharging points. The needs of users or the use-rate of publicly accessible recharging stations might be lower compared to initial assumptions, with the consequence that the total power output available through publicly accessible recharging stations reaches a disproportionately high level compared to the actual use of such stations. In such cases, the Member State concerned should be able to request authorisation to apply lower requirements than the ones laid down in this Regulation in terms of level of total power output or to cease to apply such requirements. For the Member State to be able to make such a request, the share of light-duty battery electric vehicles compared to the total fleet of light-duty vehicles registered in the Member State should have reached at least 15 % and the Member State should duly justify its request. |
| (17) | As part of the review of this Regulation, it is important that the Commission assess the need to include requirements for recharging infrastructure to serve electrically power-assisted bicycles and L-category vehicles such as powered electric bicycles and electric mopeds, and in particular the opportunity to equip recharging infrastructure with a household power socket that makes it possible for such vehicles to be easily charged, since they represent a mode of transport that can help further reduce CO2 emissions and air pollution. |
| (18) | Heavy-duty electric vehicles need a distinctively different recharging infrastructure than light-duty electric vehicles. Currently, however, there is almost no available publicly accessible infrastructure for heavy-duty electric vehicles in the Union and the deployment of such infrastructure needs to be accelerated. A combined approach of distance-based targets along the TEN-T network, with appropriate distinction between the TEN-T core network and TEN-T comprehensive network, targets for overnight recharging infrastructure and targets at urban nodes should ensure that a sufficient publicly accessible recharging infrastructure coverage for heavy-duty electric vehicles is established throughout the Union to support the expected market-share increase of heavy-duty battery electric vehicles. |
| (19) | A sufficient number of publicly accessible fast recharging points dedicated to heavy-duty vehicles should be deployed along the TEN-T network to ensure full connectivity throughout the Union. That infrastructure should have sufficient power output for heavy-duty vehicles to be recharged within the driver’s legal break time. In order to take into account the time needed for the planning, design and implementation of recharging infrastructure, which might include extending or upgrading the electricity grid in certain areas, land acquisition, environmental authorisations, and, if necessary, the awarding of public contracts, and in order to adapt to the progressive uptake of heavy-duty electric vehicles, publicly accessible recharging infrastructure for such vehicles should be deployed progressively from 2025 with a view to covering the entire TEN-T network by 2030. |
| (20) | For the purposes of deployment of recharging infrastructure along the TEN-T road network, all recharging stations to be deployed along the TEN-T road network should be located on the TEN-T road network or within 3 km driving distance from the nearest exit of a TEN-T road. |
| (21) | Some Member States are in the process of upgrading sections of the TEN-T network in order to meet the requirements laid down in Regulation (EU) No 1315/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (9). In doing so, Member States should strive to ensure that the requirements for the deployment of recharging and refuelling infrastructure along the TEN-T network set out in this Regulation are implemented in a comprehensive manner in order to avoid stranded assets and in a way that ensures the coordinated implementation of Regulation (EU) No 1315/2013 and this Regulation. |
| (22) | New recharging infrastructure standards for heavy-duty electric vehicles are currently being developed. Therefore, the Commission should consider increasing the individual power output of recharging stations at recharging pools once the new common technical specifications are available. |
| (23) | The recharging infrastructure along the TEN-T network should be complemented with publicly accessible fast recharging infrastructure in urban nodes. That infrastructure is necessary in particular for providing charging opportunities for delivery trucks and for destination charging for long-haul trucks. Recharging points for light-duty electric vehicles in urban areas, however, should fall within the national fleet-based target. In addition to fast recharging points along the TEN-T network and in urban nodes, heavy-duty electric vehicles should also be able to use publicly accessible recharging infrastructure for overnight recharging along the main transport network to specifically support the electrification of the long-haul sector. |
| (24) | In order to avoid investments that would be disproportionate compared to the traffic volumes on some roads of the TEN-T network in cases where the deployment of recharging infrastructure cannot be justified in socio-economic cost-benefit terms, Member States should be able to provide that one publicly accessible recharging pool serves both directions of travel, provided that the other applicable requirements are met in terms of the maximum distance between recharging pools, the total power output of the recharging pool and the number of recharging points at the recharging pools that are applicable for a single direction of travel. Alternatively, Member States should be able to reduce the total power output of the recharging pools dedicated to light-duty electric vehicles or heavy-duty electric vehicles located along the TEN-T road network with low traffic volumes of respectively light-duty electric vehicles or heavy-duty electric vehicles. For the same purpose, Member States should also be able to allow a higher maximum distance between the publicly accessible recharging pools dedicated to light-duty electric vehicles or heavy-duty electric vehicles along roads of the TEN-T core network with very low traffic volumes. |
| (25) | Given the insular character of Cyprus, the absence of any land connection with other Member States and the mainland and the limited extent of its TEN-T road network, the long-distance heavy-duty traffic circulating in that Member State is limited. In addition, given the limited daily mileage of heavy-duty electric vehicles in Cyprus, their recharging needs will mostly be covered by overnight recharging capacities in private locations, such as depots. Cyprus would therefore be under a disproportionate and unnecessary obligation if it had to meet the requirements set out in this Regulation concerning minimum coverage of publicly accessible recharging pools dedicated to heavy-duty vehicles in its territory in terms of the level of total power output of such recharging pools located along the TEN-T network and the maximum distance between those recharging pools. Consequently, Cyprus should be able to submit to the Commission a reasoned request for authorisation to apply lower requirements in that respect, provided that such lower requirements would not impede the circulation of heavy-duty electric vehicles in that Member State. |
| (26) | Owners of electric vehicles are expected to make use to a large extent of recharging points at their own premises or in collective parking places in residential and non-residential buildings. While the deployment of ducting infrastructure and of recharging points in such buildings is regulated by Directive 2010/31/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council (10), it is important that Member States take into account the availability of such private infrastructure when planning the deployment of publicly accessible recharging points. |
| (27) | The deployment of recharging infrastructure for heavy-duty electric vehicles is equally important in private locations that are not accessible to public, such as in private depots and at logistics centres to ensure overnight and destination charging. Public authorities should consider taking measures in the context of setting up their revised national policy frameworks to ensure that appropriate infrastructure is provided for overnight and destination charging for heavy-duty electric vehicles. |
| (28) | In accordance with the principles laid down in the Commission Communication of 23 March 2017 entitled ‘European Interoperability Framework – Implementation Strategy’, the possibility to develop advanced digital services, including contract-based payment solutions, and to ensure transparent user information by digital means depends on the deployment of digitally connected and smart recharging points that support the creation of a digitally connected and interoperable infrastructure. Those smart recharging points should comprise a set of physical attributes and technical specifications (hardware and software) that are necessary for sending and receiving data in real-time and enabling the flow of information between market actors that are dependent on those data for fully developing the recharging experience, including recharging point operators, mobility service providers, e-roaming platforms, distribution systems operators and, ultimately, end users. |
| (29) | Smart metering systems as defined in Directive (EU) 2019/944 of the European Parliament and of the Council (11) enable real-time data to be produced, which is needed to ensure the stability of the electricity grid and to encourage rational use of recharging services. By providing energy metering in real-time and accurate and transparent information on cost, the smart metering systems encourage, in combination with smart recharging points, recharging at times of low general electricity demand and low energy prices. The use of smart metering systems in combination with smart recharging points can optimise recharging, with benefits for the electricity system and for the end user. Member States should encourage the use of smart metering systems for the recharging of electric vehicles at publicly accessible recharging stations, where technically feasible and economically reasonable, and should ensure that those systems comply with the requirements laid down in Article 20 of Directive (EU) 2019/944. |
| (30) | The increasing number of electric vehicles in road, rail, maritime and other transport modes will require recharging operations to be optimised and managed in such a way that does not cause congestion and takes full advantage of the availability of renewable electricity and low electricity prices in the system. Smart recharging in particular can facilitate the further integration of electric vehicles into the electricity system as it enables a demand response through aggregation. System integration can be further facilitated through bidirectional recharging (vehicle-to-grid), while smart and bi-directional recharging can also reduce recharging costs for the consumer. All recharging points built or renovated after 13 April 2024 should therefore support smart recharging. In addition, communication standards supporting smart and bidirectional recharging should be adopted to ensure interoperability. |
| (31) | The development of on-grid and off-grid infrastructure for electric vehicles, the interaction of that infrastructure with the electricity system, and the rights and responsibilities assigned to the different actors in the electric mobility market have to be consistent with the principles established by Directive (EU) 2019/944. In that context, distribution system operators should cooperate on a non-discriminatory basis with any person establishing or operating publicly accessible recharging points. The access of Union electricity suppliers to recharging points should be without prejudice to the derogations provided for in Article 66 of Directive (EU) 2019/944. |
| (32) | The establishment and operation of recharging points for electric vehicles should be developed as a competitive market with open access to all parties interested in rolling-out or operating recharging infrastructure. In view of the limited alternative locations for recharging points for electric vehicles on motorways, existing motorway concessions such as for conventional refuelling stations or rest areas are a particular cause for concern, since they can run for very long periods or, sometimes, even lack a specific end-date altogether. Member States should seek, to the extent possible and in compliance with Directive 2014/23/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council (12), to competitively award new concessions specifically for recharging stations on or adjacent to existing motorway rest areas in order to prevent the encroachment of green spaces, as well as to limit deployment costs and to enable new market entrants. |
| (33) | Price transparency is crucial to ensuring seamless and easy recharging and refuelling. Users of alternative fuel vehicles should be provided with accurate price information before the start of the recharging or refuelling session. The price should be communicated in a clearly structured manner to allow end users to identify the different price components charged by the operator when calculating the price of a recharging or refuelling session and to anticipate the total cost. The operators of recharging stations should also be allowed to charge additional fees with a view, inter alia, to avoiding blocking the recharging point from being used by other users, as long as those fees are clearly indicated and communicated before the start of the recharging session. If the price for the recharging on an ad hoc basis is provided on a dedicated webpage, it should be clearly provided on the same webpage as the one used for the payment of the session. Laying down requirements for operators and mobility service providers would provide guarantees and predictability for consumers and thus contribute to ensuring confidence during the initial stages of uptake of electric mobility. It would also encourage the rapid uptake of battery electric vehicles and hydrogen-powered vehicles, which is essential for achieving the increased climate ambitions of the Union and the priorities set out in Commission Communication of 11 December 2019 entitled ‘The European Green Deal’. Prices should be reasonable and should not exceed the costs incurred plus a reasonable profit margin. Those price requirements are without prejudice to the right of Member States to determine the applicable unit price of the electricity charged from a recharging station in accordance with Directive 98/6/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (13). |
| (34) | New services emerge over time in support of the use of electric vehicles. Incentives provided by Member States, as well as binding measures adopted by them, such as mandatory roaming capability on designated recharging points, have played a significant role in the development of such new services. Entities offering those new services, such as mobility service providers, should be able to operate under fair market conditions. In particular, operators of recharging points should not give unduly preferential treatment to some mobility service providers, for instance through unjustified price differentiation, that may impede competition and ultimately lead to higher prices for consumers. In order to ensure the transition to new services and to ensure that users of such vehicles can easily and without hindrance use recharging infrastructure everywhere in the Union, Member States should monitor the development of the recharging market. When reviewing this Regulation, the Commission should take action where required by market developments such as limitations of services for end users, services misguiding consumers and hampering price transparency, or business practices that may limit competition. |
| (35) | Hydrogen-powered vehicles have at present very low market penetration rates. However, a deployment of sufficient hydrogen refuelling infrastructure is essential in order to make large-scale use of hydrogen-powered vehicles possible as envisaged in the Commission Communication of 8 July 2020 entitled ‘A hydrogen strategy for a climate-neutral Europe’. Currently, hydrogen refuelling points are only deployed in a few Member States and are largely unsuitable for heavy-duty vehicles. It is therefore not possible for hydrogen-powered vehicles to circulate throughout the Union. Mandatory deployment targets for publicly accessible hydrogen refuelling points should ensure a sufficiently dense network of hydrogen refuelling points across the TEN-T core network to allow for the seamless travel of hydrogen-powered light-duty and heavy-duty vehicles throughout the Union. For the purposes of deployment of hydrogen refuelling infrastructure along the TEN-T network, all hydrogen refuelling stations to be deployed along the TEN-T road network should be located on the TEN-T road network or within 10 km driving distance from the nearest exit of a TEN-T road. |
| (36) | Users of alternative fuel vehicles should be able to recharge or refuel on an ad hoc basis and pay easily and conveniently at all publicly accessible recharging and refuelling points, without the need to enter into a contract with the operator of the recharging or refuelling point or a mobility service provider. Therefore, for recharging or refuelling on an ad hoc basis, all publicly accessible recharging and refuelling points should accept payment instruments that are widely used in the Union, and in particular electronic payments through terminals and devices used for payment services. As regards infrastructure deployed before the date of application of this Regulation, the application of those requirements should be deferred. That ad hoc payment method should always be available to consumers, even when contract-based payments are offered at the recharging or refuelling point. |
| (37) | Regardless of the brand of their vehicle, end users should be able to access and use publicly accessible recharging stations in a user-friendly and non-discriminatory way. |
| (38) | Transport infrastructure should allow seamless mobility and accessibility for all users, including older persons, persons with reduced mobility and persons with disabilities. In principle, the location of all recharging and refuelling stations, as well as the recharging and refuelling stations themselves, should be designed in such a way that they are accessible to and user-friendly for as much of the public as possible, in particular older persons, persons with reduced mobility and persons with disabilities. This should include, for example, providing sufficient space around the parking place, ensuring that the recharging station is not installed on a kerbed surface, ensuring that the buttons or screen of the recharging station are at an appropriate height and the weight of the recharging and refuelling cables is such that persons with limited strength can handle them with ease. In addition, the user interface of the related recharging stations should be accessible. In that sense, the accessibility requirements set out in Directive (EU) 2019/882 of the European Parliament and of the Council (14) should be applicable to recharging and refuelling infrastructure. |
| (39) | The safety and security of users, particularly at unattended recharging stations, could be addressed by equipping the recharging stations with emergency buttons, displaying emergency services contact information, ensuring adequate lighting or by any other appropriate measures. |
| (40) | Hydrogen-powered vehicles should be able to refuel at or close to the destination, which is usually located in an urban area. To ensure that publicly accessible destination refuelling is possible at least in the main urban areas, such hydrogen refuelling stations should be provided for in all urban nodes as defined in Regulation (EU) No 1315/2013. Within the urban nodes, public authorities should consider deploying the hydrogen refuelling stations within multimodal hubs, as such hubs are a typical destination for heavy-duty vehicles and because they could also supply hydrogen to other transport modes, such as rail and inland shipping. It should be possible for one publicly accessible hydrogen refuelling station located within an urban node to be taken into account to fulfil the TEN-T requirement, provided the capacity target is achieved. |
| (41) | At this early stage of market deployment there is still a degree of uncertainty with regard to the kind of vehicles that will come onto the market and to the kind of technologies that will be widely used. In the hydrogen strategy for a climate-neutral Europe, the heavy-duty segment was identified as the most likely segment for the early mass deployment of hydrogen-powered vehicles. Therefore, hydrogen refuelling infrastructure should focus on that segment initially, while also allowing light-duty vehicles to fuel at publicly accessible hydrogen refuelling stations. To ensure interoperability, all publicly accessible hydrogen stations should at least serve gaseous hydrogen at 700 bar. The roll out of the infrastructure should also take into account the emergence of new technologies, such as liquid hydrogen technology, that allow for a larger range for heavy-duty vehicles and are expected to be the preferred technology choice of some vehicle manufacturers. |
| (42) | The development of new technologies will require coordination among all stakeholders. For example, the Clean Hydrogen Joint Undertaking, set up by Council Regulation (EU) 2021/2085 (15), should also be used with a view to facilitating and leveraging private funding so that the relevant targets identified in this Regulation can be reached. |
| (43) | A number of liquefied methane refuelling points are established in the Union, already providing a backbone for the circulation of liquefied methane driven heavy-duty vehicles. The TEN-T core network should remain the basis for the deployment of liquefied methane infrastructure as it covers the main traffic flows and allows cross-border connectivity throughout the Union. Directive 2014/94/EU recommended that such refuelling points be deployed every 400 km along the TEN-T core network. However, the existence of a limited number of gaps along the network has prevented that target from being reached. Member States should reach that target and fill the remaining gaps by 2025, after which the target should cease to apply. |
| (44) | For the purposes of this Regulation, the term ‘liquefied methane’ should be understood to mean ‘LNG, liquefied biogas or synthetic liquefied methane, including blends of these fuels’. The use of the defined term ‘liquefied methane’ does not alter the definition or composition of the separate fuels (LNG, liquefied biogas or synthetic liquefied methane), as defined in other Union legal acts. |
| (45) | Shore-side electricity facilities, either fixed or mobile, can serve maritime transport and inland navigation in providing a clean power supply and can contribute to reducing the environmental, climate and health impact of seagoing ships and inland waterway vessels, in particular in terms of air quality for urban areas surrounding ports. Under Regulation (EU) 2023/1805 ship operators of seagoing container ships and seagoing passenger ships are to reduce the amount of emissions produced by their ships while moored at the quayside. Mandatory deployment targets should ensure that the sector finds sufficient shore-side electricity supply for ships that are moored at the quayside in TEN-T core maritime ports and TEN-T comprehensive maritime ports to comply with those requirements. Therefore, it is important to lay down clear targets for shore-side electricity infrastructure deployment in TEN-T ports. In view of the fact that Member States have different governance models for ports, in order to reach those targets, Member States should be able to decide on the best way for them in which to deploy infrastructure within their ports and in the different terminals according to their needs. It is important that within ports, and where relevant between terminals, infrastructure be deployed where the maximum return on investment and occupancy rate result in the highest environmental benefits in terms of greenhouse gas emissions reductions and air pollution reductions. |
| (46) | The planning, development and deployment of shore-side electricity supply for seagoing ships requires a coordinated approach to match supply and demand. Therefore, all public and private stakeholders on both the ship side and the port side, as well as any other relevant market actors, should coordinate to allow for smooth operation on an everyday basis. |
| (47) | It is important to avoid stranded assets and to make sure that the public and private investments that are made today are future-proof and contribute to the transition to climate neutrality as set out in the European Green Deal. The deployment of shore-side electricity supply in maritime ports has to be seen together with the current and future deployment of equivalent alternative zero-greenhouse gas emissions technologies and zero-pollution technologies, in particular those technologies that deliver emission and pollution reductions both at berth and during navigation. |
| (48) | As a priority, seagoing container ships and seagoing passenger ships, being the ship categories which produce the highest amount of emissions per ship while moored at the quayside, should be provided with a shore-side electricity supply. In order to take into account the power demand characteristics of different seagoing passenger ships moored at the quayside, as well as port operational characteristics, it is necessary to distinguish between the seagoing passenger ship requirements for ro-ro passenger ships and high-speed passenger crafts on the one hand, and those for other seagoing passenger ships, on the other. |
| (49) | The mandatory deployment targets should take into account the types of vessels served and traffic volumes of maritime ports. In order to avoid the installation of capacity that will be underused, maritime ports with low traffic volumes of certain ship categories based on the average annual number of port calls should not be subject to the mandatory deployment targets for the corresponding ship categories. Similarly, the mandatory targets should not aim to target maximum demand, but a sufficiently high volume, in order to avoid underused capacity and to take account of port operational characteristics. |
| (50) | When determining the number of the port calls, port calls of short duration, port calls of ships that use zero-emission technologies, unscheduled port calls for reasons of safety or saving lives at sea, port calls under exceptional circumstances requiring the use of on-board energy generation, port calls under emergency situations that represent immediate risk to life, the ship or the environment or port calls for other reasons of force majeure should not be taken into account. |
| (51) | Maritime transport is an important factor in the cohesion and economic development of islands and the outermost regions of the Union, as well as for Ceuta and Melilla. Electricity production capacity in those islands, regions and territories may not always be sufficient to account for the power demand required to support the provision of shore-side electricity supply. In such cases, those islands, regions and territories are to be exempted from the requirement to provide shore-side electricity supply unless and until such an electrical connection with the mainland or neighbouring countries, as the case may be, has been completed or there is sufficient locally generated capacity from non-fossil energy sources. |
| (52) | An appropriate number of refuelling points for liquefied methane in TEN-T core maritime ports should be available by 2025. The deployment of that infrastructure should be driven by market demand. Refuelling points for liquefied methane include liquefied methane terminals, tanks, tank truck trailers, truck tankers, mobile containers, bunker vessels and barges. |
| (53) | Installations providing shore-side electricity supply should also be deployed in inland waterway ports of the TEN-T network. |
| (54) | The use of an external electricity supply should replace the use of the engines when aircraft are stationary at airports. This should reduce pollutant and noise emissions, improve air quality and reduce the impact of aircraft on climate change. Therefore, for all commercial transport operations, an external electricity supply should be provided while aircraft are parked at the aircraft contact stands or aircraft remote stands at airports of the TEN-T network. The external electricity supply to aircraft could be ensured by fixed or mobile ground power units, both at aircraft contact stands and aircraft remote stands. While aircraft should be able to make use of external electricity supply at all aircraft contact stands and aircraft remote stands used for commercial air transport operations, it is not necessary for each stand to be equipped with a fixed or mobile ground power unit, since a single ground power unit, whether fixed or mobile, is capable of serving multiple stands and of being deployed to meet operational needs. |
| (55) | When ensuring that stationary aircraft are provided with access to an electricity supply in airports, Member States should, where appropriate, promote cooperation of the airport managing body with suppliers of ground-handling services, as well as, where relevant, with self-handling airport users. Member States should in particular do so through the Airport Users’ Committee set up pursuant to Council Directive 96/67/EC (16). |
| (56) | Members States should be able to exempt airports of the TEN-T network with less than 10 000 commercial flight movements per year, calculated as an average over the previous three years, from the obligation to provide electricity to stationary aircraft at all remote stands. In view of the number of flights concerned, the investment and maintenance costs for providing the aircraft remote stands with electricity in those airports of the TEN-T network might not be proportionate to the environmental benefit, especially in comparison with more efficient investments to tackle airports’ CO2 emissions. |
| (57) | In accordance with Directive 2014/94/EU, Member States have established national policy frameworks outlining their objectives and plans to ensure that those objectives are met. Both the assessment of the national policy frameworks and the evaluation of Directive 2014/94/EU have highlighted the need for higher ambition and a better coordinated approach across Member States in view of the expected acceleration in the uptake of alternative fuel vehicles, in particular of electric vehicles. Furthermore, alternatives to fossil fuels will be needed in all transport modes to meet the ambitions of the European Green Deal and the Union climate objectives. The existing national policy frameworks should be revised to clearly describe how the much greater need for publicly accessible recharging and refuelling infrastructure as expressed in the mandatory targets is going to be met by the Member States. The revised national policy frameworks could also address transport modes for which no mandatory deployment targets exist. Member States should regularly report on the progress made with regard to the implementation of those revised national policy frameworks. |
| (58) | Moreover, Member States should regularly assess how the deployment and operation of recharging points could enable electric vehicles to further contribute to the flexibility of the energy system and to the further absorption of renewable electricity. That assessment should identify the appropriate measures to be implemented to ensure consistency of the infrastructure planning with the respective grid planning in order to meet the requirements set out in this Regulation. Without prejudice to Regulation (EU) 2019/943 of the European Parliament and of the Council (17) and Directive (EU) 2019/944, Member States should take all necessary steps to ensure that the electricity grid meets the power demand of the recharging infrastructure provided for in this Regulation. To that end, Member States should upgrade and maintain the electricity grid so that it is able to handle present and future demand from the transport sector for electricity. |
| (59) | The revised national policy frameworks should include support measures for the development of the market as regards alternative fuels, including the deployment of the necessary alternative fuels infrastructure to be put into place, in close cooperation with regional and local authorities and with the industry concerned, while taking into account the needs of small and medium-sized enterprises. Additionally, the revised national policy frameworks should describe the overall national framework for planning, permitting and procuring of such infrastructure, identify any obstacles and the actions that will be taken to remove them so that the time between the deployment and use of the infrastructure is reasonable and a faster rollout of infrastructure can be achieved. When revising the national policy frameworks, it is important to observe the general principles of technological neutrality and energy efficiency first. Member States should list all measures that have been adopted or are planned. |
| (60) | The development and implementation of the revised national policy frameworks of the Member States should be facilitated by the Commission by means of exchanges of information and best practices between the Member States. Each Member State should also be able to decide to appoint a national coordinator for the deployment of alternative fuels infrastructure with the task of overseeing the national coordination and implementation of the national policy framework. |
| (61) | In order to promote alternative fuels and develop the relevant infrastructure, the national policy frameworks should provide an overview of the state of play, perspectives and planned initiatives to promote alternative fuels in sectors that are difficult to decarbonise such as aviation, maritime transport, inland navigation, as well as rail transport on rail sections that cannot be electrified. In particular, Member States should provide an overview of the state of play, perspectives and planned initiatives for the decarbonisation of inland navigation along the TEN-T network in close cooperation with the Member States concerned. Long term decarbonisation strategies could also be developed for ports of the TEN-T network and airports of the TEN-T network, in particular with a focus on the deployment of infrastructure for low- and zero-emission vessels and aircraft, as well as for railway lines that are not going to be electrified. On the basis of those strategies, and taking into consideration the national market and traffic share data and market projections, the Commission should review this Regulation with a view to setting additional mandatory targets for those sectors. |
| (62) | The development of alternative fuel technologies is also important for railways, where direct electrification of a rail section might not be possible for reasons such as the cost-efficiency of the service. Different technologies are available to which the rail sector can switch from diesel trains, including direct electrification, battery-powered trains and hydrogen applications. The development of those technologies requires the deployment of suitable recharging and refuelling infrastructure in Member States. |
| (63) | Member States should make use of a wide range of regulatory and non-regulatory incentives and measures to reach the mandatory targets and implement their national policy frameworks, in close cooperation with private sector actors, who should play a key role in supporting the development of alternative fuels infrastructure. |
| (64) | Pursuant to Directive 2009/33/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (18), minimum national shares of public procurement are reserved for clean buses and zero-emission buses, where a clean bus uses alternative fuels as defined in this Regulation. With ever more public transport authorities and operators switching to clean buses and zero-emission buses in order to reach those mandatory targets, it is important that Member States include the targeted promotion and development of the necessary recharging and refuelling infrastructure for buses as a key element in their national policy frameworks. It is also important that Member States establish and maintain appropriate instruments to promote the deployment of recharging and refuelling infrastructure for buses also for captive fleets, in particular for clean buses and zero-emission buses at local level. |
| (65) | In light of the increasing diversity in the type of fuels for motorised vehicles coupled with on-going growth in the road mobility of citizens across the Union, it is necessary to provide consumers with clear and easy-to-understand information on the fuels available at refuelling stations and on the compatibility of their vehicles with different fuels or recharging points on the Union market. |
| (66) | Simple and easy-to-compare information on price of different fuels could play an important role in enabling consumers to better evaluate the relative cost of individual fuels available on the market. Therefore, a unit price comparison of certain alternative fuels and conventional fuels, expressed as ‘fuel price per 100 km’, should be shown for information purposes at all relevant refuelling stations. It should be made clear to consumers that such comparisons concern the average fuel prices in the Member State, which might differ from the actual prices charged at the refuelling station concerned. Moreover, the Commission should, if appropriate, review Directive 1999/94/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (19) in order to ensure that consumer information on fuel economy and CO2 emissions in respect of the marketing of new passenger cars, as provided for by that Directive, takes into account and reflects the developments related to the transition to alternative fuels. |
| (67) | It is necessary to provide consumers with sufficient information regarding the geographic location, characteristics and services offered at the publicly accessible recharging and refuelling points of alternative fuels covered by this Regulation. Therefore, Member States should ensure that operators or owners of publicly accessible recharging and refuelling points make relevant static data and dynamic data available. Requirements on data types regarding the availability of and accessibility to relevant data related to recharging and refuelling should be laid down, building on the outcomes of the Programme Support Action on ‘Data collection related to recharging/refuelling points for alternative fuels and the unique identification codes related to e-mobility actors’ (‘IDACS’), that was concluded in 2022. |
| (68) | This Regulation addresses data types that are necessary for the functioning of a competitive and open market, and essential for end users to make informed decisions on their recharging and refuelling sessions including through high-quality information services developed by relevant market actors. The data types requirements laid down in this Regulation should apply only to the data that are available in a digital machine-readable format. |
| (69) | Data should play a fundamental role in the adequate functioning of recharging and refuelling infrastructure. The format, the frequency and the quality in which those data should be made available and accessible determine the overall quality of an alternative fuels infrastructure that meets user needs. Moreover, those data should be accessible in a coherent manner in all Member States. Member States should make the data concerning alternative fuels infrastructure available as open data through their national access point in accordance with Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2022/670 (20) and in compliance with the additional specifications that are complementary to those set out in that Delegated Regulation. It should also be possible for such data to be provided to a common European access point that the Commission should establish, which should function as a single Union data gateway for the data made available by operators in the national access points. The common European access point should, where possible, build on the existing structures and functions of the European Alternative Fuels Observatory (‘EAFO’) in conjunction with the TENtec Information System or, for example, be made accessible through a dedicated web portal. The common European access point should enable data users to easily access data, to compare information on price and to obtain information on the characteristics of the alternative fuels infrastructure, such as accessibility, availability or power capacity. |
| (70) | It is crucial that all actors in the electric mobility sector can interact easily through digital means to provide the best service quality to end users. Such interaction requires unique identifiers for the actors in the value chain. To that end, all Member States should establish an Identification Registration Organisation (‘IDRO’) for issuing and managing unique identification (‘ID’) codes to identify, as a minimum, operators of recharging points and mobility service providers. Each IDRO should collect information on e-mobility ID codes that are already in use in its Member State, issue new e-mobility ID codes, where needed, to recharging point operators and mobility service providers under an Union-wide common agreed logic in which e-mobility ID codes are formatted, and enable the exchange of those e-mobility codes and the verification of their uniqueness via a potential future common Identification Registration Repository (‘IDRR’). The Commission should issue technical guidance on the set up of such organisations, drawing on the outcome of IDACS. |
| (71) | Technical specifications for interoperability of recharging and refuelling points should be specified in European or international standards. The European standardisation organisations should adopt European standards in accordance with Article 10 of Regulation (EU) No 1025/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council (21). It is important that those standards be based on current international standards or ongoing international standardisation work, where applicable. To that end, it is important that European standardisation processes for recharging and refuelling infrastructure proceed quickly, supporting prompt adherence to the timeline necessary for planning, tendering and building the infrastructure required under this Regulation. It is also important to initiate or accelerate the standardisation processes for a Union-wide harmonised recharging infrastructure for stationary and dynamic recharging. |
| (72) | Maritime transport and inland navigation need new standards to facilitate and consolidate the entry into the market of alternative fuels, in relation to electricity supply and hydrogen, methanol and ammonia bunkering, as well as standards for communication exchange between vessels and infrastructure. |
| (73) | The International Maritime Organization (‘IMO’) develops uniform and internationally recognised safety and environmental standards for maritime transport. Conflicts with international standards should be avoided in view of the global nature of maritime transport. Therefore, the Union should ensure that technical specifications for maritime transport adopted pursuant to this Regulation are consistent with international rules adopted by the IMO. |
| (74) | In the application of this Regulation, the Commission should consult relevant expert groups, and in particular the Sustainable Transport Forum (‘STF’) and the European Sustainable Shipping Forum (‘ESSF’). Such expert consultation is of particular importance when the Commission intends to adopt delegated or implementing acts under this Regulation. |
| (75) | Alternative fuels infrastructure is a rapidly developing area. The lack of common technical specifications constitutes a barrier for the creation of a single market of alternative fuels infrastructure. Therefore, it is necessary to lay down technical specifications for areas where common technical specifications are necessary but do not yet exist. In particular, those technical specifications should cover the communication between the electric vehicle and the recharging point, the communication between the recharging point and the recharging software management system (back-end), the communication related to the electric vehicle roaming service and the communication with the electricity grid, while ensuring the highest level of cybersecurity protection and protection of final customers’ personal data. It is also necessary to establish a suitable governance framework and the roles of the different actors involved in the vehicle-to-grid communication sector. Moreover, emerging technological developments, such as electric road systems, in particular dynamic overhead power supply via a pantograph, dynamic ground level power supply through conductive rails and inductive power supply through coils in the road, have to be accounted for. As regards data provision, it is necessary for additional data types, such as the data related to the existence of facilities offering associated services to end users, the data related to the accepted payment methods, the data related to the available languages on the infrastructure and the data related to providing smart and bidirectional recharging services, to be added to the data on publicly accessible recharging. |
| (76) | In order to supplement this Regulation by establishing further technical specifications and to amend this Regulation by adding additional data types, the power to adopt acts in accordance with Article 290 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) should be delegated to the Commission in respect of common technical requirements for a common application programme interface to enable an automated and uniform data exchange between the operators of publicly accessible recharging and refuelling points and data users. It is of particular importance that the Commission carry out appropriate consultations during its preparatory work, including at expert level, and that those consultations be conducted in accordance with the principles laid down in the Interinstitutional Agreement of 13 April 2016 on Better Law-Making (22). In particular, to ensure equal participation in the preparation of delegated acts, the European Parliament and the Council receive all documents at the same time as Member States’ experts, and their experts systematically have access to meetings of Commission expert groups dealing with the preparation of delegated acts. |
| (77) | In order to ensure uniform conditions for the implementation of this Regulation, implementing powers should be conferred on the Commission with respect to the development of labelling provisions, to the format, frequency and quality of data on publicly accessible recharging and refuelling points to be made available and accessible under this Regulation and to the procedure enabling that availability and accessibility. Those powers should be exercised in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council (23). |
| (78) | The market for alternative fuels and in particular for zero-emission fuels is still in the early stages of development and technology is evolving fast. This development is likely to affect the demand for alternative fuels and consequently for alternative fuels infrastructure across all transport modes. The Commission should therefore, by 31 December 2024, present a technology and market readiness report dedicated to heavy-duty vehicles. That report should take into account the first indications of the preferences of the market and consider the technological development and the development of the technical specifications. By 31 December 2026 and every five years thereafter, the Commission should carry out a review of this Regulation. |
| (79) | Given that this Regulation will result in additional adjustment and administrative costs, the overall regulatory burden for the sectors covered by this Regulation should be kept under close review. Against that backdrop, in its report evaluating the functioning of this Regulation the Commission should assess the extent to which the objectives of this Regulation have been met and the extent to which it has impacted the competitiveness of the relevant sectors. That review should also cover the interaction of this Regulation with other relevant Union legal acts, including possible actions and measures that have been or could be taken to reduce the total cost pressure on the relevant sectors. |
| (80) | Since the objective of this Regulation, namely to ensure the deployment of sufficient alternative fuels infrastructure in the Union, in particular for road vehicles, trains, vessels and stationary aircraft, cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States but can rather, by reason of the need to enable Union-wide mobility of alternative fuel vehicles, 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. |
| (81) | Directive 2014/94/EU should therefore be repealed. Commission Delegated Regulations (EU) 2019/1745 (24) and (EU) 2021/1444 (25) set out undated technical specifications for certain types of alternative fuels infrastructure and those specifications are now dated and listed in Annex II to this Regulation. Therefore, those Delegated Regulations should also be repealed, |