ALTENERATIVE FUELS INFRASTRUCTURE: APPLICATION DATE OF NEW REGULATION IS HERE

Regulation (EU) 2023/1804 on the deployment of alternative fuels infrastructure is applicable in Ireland from 13 April 2024.

Operators of recharging points should note the obligations in Article 5, some of which apply immediately on 13 April 2024, and others which apply from future dates. A 'recharging point' means a 'fixed or mobile, on-grid or off-grid interface for the transfer of electricity to an electric vehicle which, although it may have one or more connectors to accommodate different connector types, is capable of recharging only one electric vehicle at a time, and which excludes devices with a power output less than or equal to 3,7 kW the primary purpose of which is not the recharging of electric vehicles'.

The Regulation builds on the previous Directive 2014/94/EU which remains in force, and whose obligations were required to be transposed into domestic law by 18 November 2016.

BRUSSELS DECLARATION ON FUTURE OF EUROPEAN MOBILITY

The Belgian presidency announced the direction of transport policy and legislative development following the European elections in June 2024. There will be an emphasis on making rail transport the backbone of European mobility and on unlocking the full potential of active mobility. Further information is available here.

REGULATION ON EMISSIONS' ACCOUNTING IN TRANSPORT

A Regulation to establish rules for the accounting of greenhouse gas emissions of transport services that start or end in EU territory is under development. It would apply to any entity providing or organising freight and passenger services in the EU that calculates emissions of a transport service starting or ending in the EU and discloses disaggregated information on those emissions to any third party for commercial or regulatory purposes.

It is anticipated that Parliament will adopt its first reading position on 10 April 2024 and that the legislative process will continue after the June European elections.

This forms part of a wider package of legislation aimed at greening freight transport. Further information is available here and here.

REVISED ENERGY PERFORMANCE OF BUILDINGS DIRECTIVE

The consolidated text of the Directive amending the EPBD is available. The revised Directive will contain updated requirements around infrastructure for sustainable mobility, including recharging requirements in buildings. Once formally adopted by the Council it will be published in the OJEU and enter into force 20 days later.

REVISED TEN-T REGULATION

The EU institutions reached provisional agreement on the modernisation of the Regulation on the development of the trans-European transport network. The Regulation provides for Projects of Common Interest in the transport sector. It provides for development and modernisation of transport infrastructure in three phases: along the core network to 2030, the extended network to 2040, and the comprehensive network to 2050. The agreed position now needs to be endorsed by the Member States and Parliament.

This article contains a general summary of developments and is not a complete or definitive statement of the law. Specific legal advice should be obtained where appropriate.