Art. 5 of Legislative Decree 79/99 vested GME with the responsibility of organising and managing transactions in the Electricity Market under criteria of neutrality, transparency, objectivity and competition between producers.

As part of the management of transactions in the Electricity Market, GME was also assigned with the task of organising venues for the trading of Green Certificates (art. 6, Ministerial Decree of 24 Oct. 2005) and of Energy Efficiency Certificates (articles 10, Ministerial Decrees of 20 Jul. 2004, as subsequently amended and supplemented by the Ministerial Decree of 21 Dec. 2007). Legislative Decree 387/03 (as subsequently amended and supplemented), implementing Directive 2001/77/EC on promotion of electricity generation from renewables in the internal electricity market, contains additional provisions on Green Certificates.

Directive 2003/54/EC (repealing the previous Directive 96/92/EC) establishes common rules for generation, transmission, distribution and supply of electricity and defines, among others, organisational and operational rules for the electricity sector and for access to the market.

Directive 2003/55/EC of 26 Jun. 2003 concerns common rules for the internal market in natural gas and repeals Directive 98/30/EC.

Law no. 239 of 23 Aug. 2004 (as subsequently amended and supplemented) provides for reorganisation of the energy sector as a whole and establishes, among others, general objectives of energy policy, such as providing security, flexibility and continuity of energy supplies and promoting the unified operation of energy markets.

On 28 Jan. 2009, Law-Decree no. 185 of 29 Nov. 2008, concerning urgent measures to support households, labour, employment and businesses and to redesign national strategies in view of combating the crisis, was amended and converted into Law no. 2.

On 29 Apr. 2009, the Minister of Economic Development issued the Ministerial Decree of 29 Apr. 2009 concerning: directives to reform the electricity market rules under art. 3, para. 10 of Law no. 2 of 28 Jan. 2009; impetus to be given to the evolution of regulated forward markets; and strengthening of electricity market monitoring activities.

On a yearly basis, a Decree of the Minister of Economic Development determines the procedure for the sale of the electricity referred to in Art. 3, para. 12 of Legislative Decree no. 79 of 16 Mar. 1999, in the Electricity Market by Gestore dei Servizi Energetici-GSE SpA, as well as the procedure for assignment of “CIP-6” electricity. 

On 15 Aug. 2009, Law no. 99 of 23 Jul. 2009, concerning provisions on development and internationalisation of companies, as well as on energy matters, came into force. Art. 30 of the Law vests GME with exclusive responsibility to economically manage the natural gas market under neutrality, transparency, objectivity and competition criteria.

The Decree of the Minister of Economic Development of 18 Mar. 2010 gave a first implementation of Law 99/09, vesting GME with the organisation and management of a natural gas trading platform (P-GAS), into which bids/offers of quotas of imported gas (as per Art. 1, para. 1 of the Ministerial Decree of 19 Mar. 2008) must be submitted.

Under the Decree of the Minister of Economic Development of 6 Aug. 2010 (published in “Gazzetta Ufficiale” no. 200 of 27 Aug. 2010), GME took over the management – on the P-GAS - of bids/offers of royalties on gas production owed to the State as per Law 40/07.

The P-GAS is open to additional bids/offers of gas volumes, including those submitted by parties other than those subject to the obligations of Art. 11 of Law 40/2007.

The P-GAS Regulations were approved by the Minister of Economic Development on 23 Apr. 2010 and subsequently amended and supplemented by the Decree of the Minister of Economic Development of 6 Aug. 2010, after hearing the opinion of “Autorità per l’energia elettrica e il gas” (AEEG – the Italian electricity & gas regulator).

 

In accordance with Art. 30, paras. 6 and 7 of Law no. 99 of 23 Jul. 2009, Legislative Decree no. 130 of 13 Aug. 2010 introduced measures to strengthen the competitiveness of the natural gas market including, among others, the implementation of new storage capacity.

 

Legislative Decree no. 130 of 13 Aug. 2010 – concerning measures to strengthen the competitiveness of the natural gas market and to transfer the consequent benefits to final customers as per Art. 30, paras. 6 and 7 of Law no. 99 of 23 Jul. 2009, - published in “Gazzetta Ufficiale, Serie Generale no. 192, Supplemento Ordinario no. 195” of 18 Aug. 2010, provides, among others, that:

• with a view to increasing the liquidity of the gas exchange to be established, investing parties are required to offer for sale, in GME’s markets, the quantities of gas made available to them in the Winter period and purchased in Summer at Summer prices;

• AEEG shall - within 28 Feb. 2011 - issue rules on merit-order balancing in the natural gas market in accordance with the guidelines given by the Ministry, so that the same rules may enter into force on 1 Apr. 2011.

Moreover, Legislative Decree 130/10 lays down some provisions on the application of VAT in the gas exchange to be established. These provisions make it possible to harmonise the time periods for invoicing and the identification of the chargeable event for the application of VAT in the gas market with those currently adopted in the electricity market.

The Decree of the Minister of Economic Development of 14 December 2010, concerning the procedures, terms and conditions for electricity imports/exports for the year 2011, establishes that daily transmission capacities on the border with Slovenia shall be allocated under the Market Coupling mechanism.

The Decree of the Minister of Economic Development of 31 July 2009 established criteria and procedures for the provision of information on the fuel mix used to generate the electricity supplied, as well as on its environmental impact.

GME is a contracting authority within the meaning and for the purposes of art. 3, para. 25 of Legislative Decree no. 163 of 2006 (Code of public contracts for execution of works, provision of services and supply of products).