EU gov'ts strike deal on energy market liberalization

Energy ministers from European Union (EU) member states stroke a compromised deal to liberalize energy markets on Friday after months of negotiations. The legislative package for the EU electricity and gas market, finally agreed by EU energy ministers at their monthly meeting in Luxembourg, is aimed to build a complete European internal energy market with open competition and effective regulation. A main element of the legislation is to break up energy giants so as to make it easier for new market entrants and promote competition. The European Commission proposed last year to force energy giants to sell off their transmission networks, the so-called ownership unbundling. Due to opposition from Germany and France, EU leaders agreed at a June summit to let energy giants retain ownership of their transmission networks, but those... [read full story]