Changes from report parliamentary committee draft to plenary report

Added‘3. Member States shall adopt measures to ensure that a proportionate share of the benefits of renewable energy projects with an installed capacity above 10 MW is passed on, directly or indirectly, to local citizens and communities in proximity to or otherwise affected by those projects. Renewable energy projects directly developed by citizens and renewable energy communities shall be exempted from the obligation of this paragraph.

RemovedArticle 3 – paragraph 1 – point 1 – point b, Article 8 – paragraph 5b – subparagraph 1 a (new): To that end, Member States shall identify capacity and staffing needs in authorities responsible for electricity grid planning and permitting, including relevant national, regional and local authorities, and take appropriate measures to address identified gaps, including through targeted recruitment and the upskilling and reskilling of staff.

Added3a. Member States shall identify the public likely to be affected by the renewable energy project and shall establish minimum standards for benefit sharing and appropriate criteria to assess the effectiveness of the measures referred to in paragraph 3.

RemovedDirective (EU) 2024/1788

Added3b. The Commission shall, within six months from … [the date of entry into force of this amending Directive], develop and issue guidelines on benefit sharing to support Member States or relevant regional authorities establishing standards and criteria taking into account existing best practices.

RemovedArticle 3 – paragraph 1 – point 1 – point b, Article 8 – paragraph 5b – subparagraph 1 b (new): The Commission shall evaluate the progress made by Member States and publish its assessment. In the absence of progress, the Commission may propose corrective measures to support Member States in their implementation by assisting them in reforming and streamlining their permitting procedures.

Added3c. Where it can be demonstrated that equally effective direct and indirect measures ensuring the sharing of the benefits are in place, the obligation referred to in paragraph 3 shall be considered fulfilled and no new measures need to be introduced.

RemovedDirective (EU) 2024/1788

Added4. Member States shall ensure that local communities have access to clear, accessible and reliable information on the permitting process, their rights and benefit sharing measures. Project developers and local communities shall engage with a view to reaching an agreement on benefit sharing measures related to the project. If such an agreement cannot be found, Member States designate and finance an independent facilitator to promote dialogue between the project developer and the general public for renewable energy projects with an installed capacity above 7 MW. The facilitator shall only intervene upon request by municipality, energy community or the project developer and shall:

RemovedArticle 3 – paragraph 1 – point 1 – point b, Article 8 – paragraph 5b – subparagraph 1 c (new): Member States shall make effective use of funding available under the National and Regional Partnership Plans (NRPP). In addition, Member States shall promote and facilitate access for relevant stakeholders to funding available under the European Competitiveness Fund in particular under the policy window ‘Clean Transition and Industrial Decarbonisation’ and for relevant skills initiatives, to support this measure.

Added(a) facilitate public consultations, as necessary, including early consultations during the phase prior to the permit application;

RemovedDirective (EU) 2024/1788

Added(b) engage to find solutions to address potential concerns raised by local communities and municipalities;

RemovedArticle 3 – paragraph 1 – point 1 – point b, Article 8 – paragraph 5b – subparagraph 1 d (new): Where appropriate, Member States may introduce proportionate and non-discriminatory mechanism, such as a fee, from project developers or transmission and distribution operators, to support administrative capacity for permitting provided that such mechanisms are designed to avoid cost-passing to end-consumers and be cost-effective for project developers and system operators economically dependent on decisions taken by the national authorities. The mechanism shall be set up without prejudice to the organisation of Member States administrative structures and the allocation of competences under national law. Where such mechanisms are applied to electricity projects, Member States shall ensure consistency with the treatment of other sectors subject to comparable permitting requirements.

Added(c) ensure support and transparency in the choice of the type of benefit sharing measure, where relevant.

RemovedArticle 4 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1: Member States shall bring into force the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with this Directive by [one year after its adoption] at the latest. They shall forthwith communicate to the Commission the text of those provisions.

AddedMember States may set up a proportionate fee, paid by project developers, to finance the services of the facilitator. Member States may rely on alternative procedures in place of the facilitator where they can demonstrate that such procedures are fulfilling a similar function such as national, regional or local authorities with the necessary knowledge and skills serving as facilitators.’;

Added(4) Article 16 is amended as follows:

Added(a) in paragraph 3, the following sentence is deleted:

Added‘Applicants shall be allowed to submit relevant documents in digital form.’

Added(b) the following paragraph 3a is inserted:

Added‘3a. Member States shall set up a single digital portal at national level for all the steps of the permit-granting procedures for renewable energy, storage, grid projects, and recharging stations and recharging pools, serving as a single-entry point for applicants and ensuring the coordinated handling of applications across all competent authorities.

AddedMember States shall ensure that the single digital portal is interoperable with relevant administrative systems, including existing portals of system operators.

AddedMember States shall ensure that permit-granting procedures are fully digital by default, using structured and machine-readable data formats and interoperable systems. Applicants shall submit permit applications and all relevant documents required for the permit-granting procedure only through the single digital portal. Access to the single digital portal shall be granted to competent authorities and relevant project developers. Access to information contained therein shall be governed by applicable Union and national rules on public access to documents, ensuring the protection of commercially sensitive and other confidential information. The single digital portal shall automatize the attribution of permit applications to the competent authorities, which shall process the relevant applications and documents in electronic form and interact with the applicants directly in the single digital portal. The single digital portal shall include features allowing the applicant to be informed about all steps of the permit-granting procedure, including the respective obligations of the competent authorities and system operators involved the status of the procedure and of the decisions of the relevant authorities, and to check compliance with the permit-granting deadlines set in this Directive. The single digital portal shall ensure access to the relevant environmental and geological data and decisions available in the single digital geographic information system-based portal referred to in Article 10(3) of Regulation [xxxxx] of the European Parliament and of the Council.The single digital portal shall publish annual statistical data regarding the duration of permit-granting procedures, including, inter alia, the duration of permit-granting procedures for grid connection for new customers, clearly identifying the different steps of the permit-granting procedure and their duration. This data shall be publicly available, specified for every competent authority and system operator.

AddedMember States shall require the competent authorities and system operators to provide applicants in the single digital portal, at an early stage, with a comprehensive and exhaustive set of requirements for the submission of permit applications, including precise guidance on the documentation and information required for permit-granting procedures. To enhance predictability and reduce administrative burden, such guidance shall be presented in standardised formats, including structured requirement frameworks and procedural checklists, differentiated by connection type.

AddedThe single contact point or points referred to in paragraph 3 shall have access to all relevant data and information available in the portal, in order to perform its duties.

Added(5) Article 16b is amended as follows:

Added▌

Added(aa) in paragraph 2, the second subparagraph is replaced by the following:

Added‘The permit-granting procedure for the repowering of renewable energy power plants, for new installations with an electrical capacity of less than 300 kW and for co-located energy storage, as well as for the connection of such plants, installations and storage to the grid, located outside renewables acceleration areas shall not exceed 6 months, including with regard to environmental assessments where required by the relevant law. However, in the case of offshore renewable energy projects, the permit-granting procedure shall not exceed one year. Where duly justified on the ground of extraordinary circumstances, Member States may extend the six-month period by up to three months and the one-year period for offshore renewable energy projects by up to six months. Member States shall inform the project developer clearly of the extraordinary circumstances that justify such an extension.’

Added(b) the following paragraph 3 is added:

Added‘3. In the permit-granting procedure referred to in paragraph 1 and in paragraph 2, second subparagraph, Member States shall ensure that the lack of reply by the relevant competent authorities or entities within the established deadline results in the specific steps to be considered as approved, except for environmental decisions and grid connection permits or agreements, or where the principle of administrative tacit approval does not exist in the national legal system of the Member State concerned. All decisions shall be made publicly available, including final decisions granted tacitly.’;

Added(6) Article 16c is amended as follows:

Added(a) paragraph 1 is deleted;

Added(b) the following paragraph 2b is inserted:

Added‘2b. Member States shall ensure that a change in the status of the land where a renewable energy installation or electricity transmission or distribution system infrastructure is placed does not prevent that installation or infrastructure from being repowered, refurbished or modernised.’;

Added(ba) paragraph 3 is replaced by the following:

Added‘Where the refurbishment, modernisation or repowering of solar installations does not entail the use of significant additional space except for the temporary additional use of space needed during the works and complies with the applicable environmental mitigation measures established for the original solar installation, the project shall be exempt from any applicable requirements to carry out a screening process as provided for in Article 16a(4), to determine whether the project requires an environmental impact assessment, or to carry out an environmental impact assessment pursuant to Article 2(1) and Article 4 of Directive 2011/92/EU.

AddedMember States may, under justified circumstances, including the need to achieve climate neutrality and renewable energy targets, exempt the refurbishment, modernisation and repowering of solar installations from:

Added(a) an assessment of their implications for Natura 2000 sites pursuant to Article 6(3) of Directive 92/43/EEC;

Added(b) the assessment of their implications on species protection pursuant to Article 12(1) of Directive 92/43/EEC and to Article 5 of Directive 2009/147/EC;

Added(c) the screening pursuant to Article 5 of [Regulation xxxxx of the European Parliament and of the Council on speeding up environmental assessments].

AddedAny additional land use, including temporary land use, shall be limited to what is strictly necessary for the technical and functional requirements of the refurbishment, modernisation or repowering. Where a screening process or an environmental impact assessment is required for the repowering of the solar installations, such a process or impact assessment shall be limited to the potential impact arising from a change or extension compared to the original project.

AddedMember States shall restrict the application of this paragraph in Natura 2000 areas and other areas under national protection schemes and cultural or historical heritage protected areas.’

Added(c) the following paragraph 4 is added:

Added‘4. Where the refurbishment, modernisation or repowering of wind energy installations increases the total capacity of the installation without the use of significant additional land surface except for the temporary additional use of space needed during the works while complying with the applicable environmental mitigation measures established for the original wind energy installation, the project shall be exempt from any applicable requirements to carry out a screening process pursuant to Article 16a(4), to determine whether the project requires an environmental impact assessment pursuant to Article 4(2) of Directive 2011/92/EU or Article 5 of Regulation [xxxxx] of the European Parliament and of the Council, or to carry out an environmental impact assessment pursuant to Article 2(1) and Article 4(1) of Directive 2011/92/EU.

AddedMember States may, under justified circumstances, including the need to achieve climate neutrality and renewable energy targets, exempt the refurbishment, modernisation and repowering of wind energy installations from:

Added(a) an assessment of their implications for Natura 2000 sites pursuant to Article 6(3) of Directive 92/43/EEC;

Added(b) the assessment of their implications on species protection pursuant to Article 12(1) of Directive 92/43/EEC and to Article 5 of Directive 2009/147/EC;

AddedAny additional land use, including temporary land use, shall be limited to what is strictly necessary for the technical and functional requirements of the refurbishment, modernisation or repowering. Where a screening process or an environmental impact assessment is required for the refurbishment, modernisation or repowering of the wind energy installation, such a process or impact assessment shall be limited to the potential impact arising from a change or extension compared to the original project.

AddedMember States shall restrict the application of this paragraph in Natura 2000 areas and other areas under national protection schemes, and cultural or historical heritage protected areas.’;

Added(7) Article 16d is amended as follows:

Added(a) paragraph 1 is replaced by the following:

Added‘1. Member States shall ensure that the permit-granting procedure referred to in Article 16(1) for the installation of solar energy equipment and co-located energy storage with a total installed capacity above 200 kW in existing or future artificial structures, with the exclusion of artificial water surfaces, shall not exceed three months, provided that the primary aim of such artificial structures is not solar energy production or energy storage. By way of derogation from Article 4(2) of Directive 2011/92/EU and Annex II, points 3(a) and (b), alone or in conjunction with point 13(a), to that Directive, the installation of solar energy equipment and co-located energy storage referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 of this Article shall be exempt from the requirement, where applicable, to carry out a dedicated environmental impact assessment pursuant to Article 2(1) of Directive 2011/92/EU .’;

Added(b) paragraph 2 is replaced by the following:

Added‘Member States shall not require any administrative permits, including on environmental aspects, with the exception of grid connection permits or agreements, for the installation of solar energy equipment and co-located energy storage with a total installed capacity of 200 kW or less. Without prejudice to paragraph 1, Member States shall restrict the application of this paragraph in Natura 2000 areas and other areas under national protection schemes and cultural or historical heritage protected areas. Member States shall monitor the application of this paragraph and shall take appropriate measures where there are objective indications that cumulation of installations benefiting from the exemption referred to in this paragraph give rise to likely significant adverse effects on the environment.’;

Added(c) the following paragraphs 3 and 4 are added:

Added‘3. Member States may exclude certain areas from the application of paragraphs 1 and 2 for the purpose of protecting cultural, historical heritage, national defense interests, or for safety or for grid security reasons.

Added4. Member States shall remove regulatory and non-regulatory barriers that affect the installation of plug-in mini-solar systems of up to 800 W capacity in and on buildings.’;

Added(7) In Article 16e, paragraph 1 is replaced by the following: