Feed aggregator

The European Council announced on Friday (18 November) that it has green-lit negotiations on increasing the presence of Frontex, the EU border agency, in Albania, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro.

Egy százaléknyit erősödött pénteken a forint a főbb devizákkal szemben, a hetet viszont vegyesen fejezte be, az euróval és a dollárral szemben gyengébben, a svájci frank ellenében erősebben.

Mit dem Übergang auf sauberere Technologien in der Automobilindustrie droht laut Regionalregierungen ein verstärkter Wettbewerb um immer weniger Arbeitsplätze. Als Gegenmaßnahme fordern sie eine stärkere Zusammenarbeit.

Vladimír Lengvarský (OĽANO-jelölt) levelet küldött a kórházaknak az egészségügy jelenlegi helyzetével kapcsolatban. Ezt Petra Lániková, a tárca szóvivője erősítette meg a TASR-nek. A TASR számára is elérhető levélben a miniszter a kormány álláspontját magyarázza, és ismerteti a Szlovák Orvosszakszervezettel (LOZ) folytatott legutóbbi tárgyalás eredményeit, továbbá kinyilvánította a megegyezésre való szándékát. A levélre a Denník N hívta fel a figyelmet.

Written by Alex Wilson.

The European Commission has adopted a proposal to improve the functioning of EU gas markets during the current energy crisis. It introduces a joint purchasing tool, seeks to improve efficiency and security of gas supply, and limits prices and volatility. The proposed Council regulation is under discussion among EU Member States.

Background

On 18 October 2022, the European Commission adopted a proposal for a Council regulation enhancing solidarity through better coordination of gas purchases, exchanges of gas across borders and reliable price benchmarks. This is one of several urgent EU legislative actions undertaken to address the energy crisis triggered by Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine. The proposal is linked to the Commission’s REPower EU plan (18 May 2022), which aims to end Europe’s reliance on energy imports from Russia and accelerate the clean energy transition. And it is closely related to other emergency EU legislation adopted over the course of 2022, including an EU Regulation on filling in gas storage levels; a Council Regulation voluntarily curbing gas consumption over the winter period; and a Council Regulation containing a series of emergency measures (demand reduction, market intervention and windfall levies) to address the problem of very high energy prices across the EU in 2022 and 2023 (see EPRS briefing on the topic).

Legal basis

The proposed Council regulation uses Article 122 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) as its legal basis, like many other urgent EU proposals adopted in the face of the energy crisis. Article 122 TFEU is designed for use in case of a serious threat to energy supplies, and it is certainly the case that close energy ties between the EU and Russia (until recently the leading supplier of fossil fuels to Europe) have collapsed because of the invasion of Ukraine in 2022. This deterioration of energy relations is evident from the EU embargo on imports of Russian coal; the impending EU embargo on Russian oil and oil-related products; and the drastic reduction in Russian pipeline gas supplies. Article 122 TFEU can accelerate the process of EU decision-making in an emergency situation, because it only requires the agreement of the Council of the EU and does not provide for any legislative role for the European Parliament. However, frequent use of Article 122 TFEU can reduce the level of democratic scrutiny over EU policies. The normal legal basis for EU energy policies is Article 194 TFEU, which is being used to revise more permanent legislation on EU gas markets. Furthermore, Article 194 TFEU was used to agree the EU regulation on gas storage, which was swiftly adopted by the Parliament and Council under an expedited procedure.

Main features of the proposed Council regulation

This proposal aims to develop greater joint purchasing of gas and ensure the efficient operation of gas infrastructure, pipelines and LNG terminals. It also includes measures to enhance security of supply, and takes action to address the current problem of high prices and volatility in EU gas markets. In light of the emergency character of the Council regulation and its related legal basis (Article 122 TFEU), the Commission has proposed that it should be valid for a period of one year, albeit with the possibility of prolongation.

Joint purchasing

The EU would take the first concrete steps towards the joint purchasing of gas by developing a temporary joint purchasing tool. The tool would be ready by spring 2023 and impact on gas supplies during the next filling season (i.e. ahead of winter 2023/2024). Joint purchasing would involve a two-step process. Firstly, gas purchasing companies would aggregate their demand using a dedicated service provider, hired under a public procurement procedure. Member States would have to ensure at least 15 % of their storage filling requirements for next year were included by their companies in the demand aggregation process (roughly 13.5 billion cubic metres across the EU as a whole). The second step would involve some of these companies voluntarily deciding to form a gas purchasing consortium (or even multiple consortia that vary by region). The idea is that a gas purchasing consortium could negotiate lower prices and ensure a more stable supply, especially in a context of scarcity. This proposal is consistent with a longstanding demand of the European Parliament for a joint EU gas purchasing mechanism.

Efficient operation of pipelines and LNG terminals

The proposal grants the gas system operators more tools to react rapidly to changes in gas flows and possible contractual congestion. These are becoming more problematic because of the urgent need to diversify gas supplies away from Russia, which in turn sharply increases the EU’s reliance on liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplies, obtained from a wide range of exporting countries. The proposal envisages a transparency platform and the development of an organised market of secondary capacities for LNG imports, similar to those already in existence for the transport of gas via pipelines. This is consistent with the Commission’s legislative proposal (December 2021) to reform EU gas and hydrogen markets.

Security of supply

The proposal would facilitate Member States in taking further steps to reduce EU gas demand beyond this winter. Security of supply will remain a major concern going into the following winter (2023-2024) because of the (likely) total interruption of Russian gas supplies, making it much harder to fill in gas storage sites to their full capacity. To better prepare for an emergency, Member States would be able to redefine their protected consumers, so long as vulnerable households continue to be protected in all circumstances. Member States would likewise be able to reduce the ‘non-essential consumption’ of protected customers, provided this does not lead to disconnection. Critical gas-fired power plants would now be covered by a solidarity protection obligation. Default rules for bilateral solidarity between Member States would henceforth apply in all instances where no solidarity agreements exist. This has now become a necessity, given that only six out of the 40 required solidarity agreements are in place. In the event of an EU or regional emergency involving major gas disruptions and supply shortages, the Council of the EU would have the possibility to decide on an efficient allocation of gas capacities.

Addressing high prices and volatility

The proposal would develop a new complementary benchmark for LNG imports to Europe. The Dutch Title Transfer Facility (TTF), Europe’s main market hub for gas, remains too dependent on prices for pipeline gas from Russia, with the result that its operation may now be artificially inflating EU gas prices. The EU Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators (ACER) would be tasked with developing this new benchmark. The proposal also envisages the future possibility of developing a gas market correction mechanism, in the form of a potential new Council Regulation that would establish a maximum dynamic price at which natural gas transactions can take place in the TTF spot markets.

The proposal would introduce an intra-day price volatility management mechanism aimed at limiting large price movements in electricity and gas derivatives contracts within the same trading day, and which would complement existing ‘circuit breakers’ established on trading platforms. To this specific end, and to better assess issues relating to high pricing and volatility, ACER and the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) would be allocated new tasks and required to cooperate more closely.

The proposal does not include concrete measures to implement a price cap on gas imports to the EU, and therefore does not fully address the European Council’s request for a ‘temporary dynamic price corridor’ and a ‘temporary EU framework to cap the price of gas in electricity generation’ (see below).

Next steps

Member States are in the process of negotiating the final text of the Council regulation, and some have expressed their dissatisfaction with a text that does not contain concrete proposals for a cap on gas prices, as requested by the European Council on 20-21 October 2022. The Commission has previously expressed its concerns about the unintended consequences of a gas price cap, arguing that it could disincentivise demand reduction and jeopardise security of supply to Europe. Nevertheless, some kind of plan to curb gas prices could form part of the process of Member States agreeing to the text of this Council regulation.

The Council regulation is currently under discussion and may be adopted at the extraordinary meeting of energy ministers on 24 November 2022, possibly alongside a new plan to limit future gas prices.

Read this ‘at a glance’ on ‘Enhancing solidarity in EU gas markets‘ in the Think Tank pages of the European Parliament.

Russia said on Friday (18 November) it hoped to clinch a prisoner swap with the US to return convicted Russian arms trafficker Viktor Bout in an exchange that would likely include US basketball star Brittney Griner.

Két nappal a játékok megnyitója előtt hirtelen teljes fordulatot vett az alkoholos italok árusításának kérdése a katari VB-n. A FIFA exkluzív szponzora, a Budweiser rövid üzenetben reagált a twitteren, majd törölte azt. (euronews)

VIENNA, 18 November 2022 – OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Teresa Ribeiro payed an official visit to Hungary from 15 to 16 November 2022, during which she met with several government officials including Minister for Culture and Innovation János Csák, State Secretary for EU Affairs of the Ministry of Justice János Bóka, State Secretary for Security Policy and Political Director of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and Trade Bunford Zsol, Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Interior Bence Rétvári, State Secretary for International Communications and Relations of  the Prime Minister’s Office Zoltán Kovács, as well as with Chair of the Cultural Committee of the Parliament László Pósán. The Representative also met with President András Koltay of the media regulator State Office of Media and Communications and with Director Dániel Papp of the Media Services and Support Trust Fund. During her visit, she had discussions with several journalists and representatives of civil society.

Ribeiro and her counterparts discussed the criticism by several international organization on media freedom in Hungary, including from the United Nations, the Council of Europe and the European Union. Ribeiro further raised specific concerns over the reported difficulties that independent media face accessing public information, including the fact that requests for public information are not dealt with in a timely manner by the respective authorities. Several government interlocutors mentioned recent legal changes that would shorten the period for responses to request for government information.

The Representative also pointed to shortcomings related to the independence of the public broadcaster, the governance of the media regulating bodies, and the current practice regarding the granting of broadcasting licenses, as well as to the need to increase transparency around the distribution of state advertising funds. Ribeiro also discussed the issue of surveillance (with spyware) of journalists – which has a profoundly chilling effect on journalists and their sources – including the fact that in some cases judicial oversight seems to be lacking.

“Taken together, all these issues result in a situation is not conducive to a vibrant and pluralistic media landscape.  When looking at the media freedom situation in Hungary, a picture arises of a systemic approach in which some voices do not enjoy the same basic conditions to be heard,” Ribeiro said. “I reminded the authorities of the government’s obligation to ensure a truly pluralistic media ecosystem that allows journalists to scrutinise the work of those in power. I expressed the hope that remedial media-freedom-related measures to strengthen media pluralism in the country will be initiated and expressed my willingness to co-operate with them in enhancing the situation.”

The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media observes media developments in all 57 OSCE participating States. She provides early warning on violations of freedom of expression and media freedom and promotes full compliance with OSCE media freedom commitments. Learn more at www.osce.org/fom, Twitter: @OSCE_RFoM and on www.facebook.com/osce.rfom.

Une étude mondiale a estimé que la personne moyenne passe deux heures et 29 minutes par jour sur les médias sociaux. Mais de nombreuses personnes ont commencé à reconnaître leur dépendance et à arrêter.

La chaine de télévisions New World TV souhaite rassurer tous les fans de football d'Afrique Sub-Saharienne, en confirmant qu'elle est bien détentrice exclusive des droits des 64 matches de la Coupe du Monde Qatar 2022™ en français et en langues locales, « mais aussi de tous les programmes de résumés », précise Louis Biyao, avocat de New World TV.

Cela signifie que toute autre chaîne proposant une programme similaire, ne pourra exploiter aucune image de matches durant une telle émission de résumés. Bien au contraire, New World Sport proposera chaque jour trois grandes émissions avec toutes les images de la compétition : New World Matin, Rond Central et La Belle Equipe.

New World TV est fière de faire bénéficier tous les fans de football du plus grand réseau d'experts et de consultants jamais déployé pour une coupe du Monde de football en Afrique francophone.
La XXIIème édition sera commentée pour la première fois en Afrique en Wolof, Lingala, Ewé et Bambara, démontrant la volonté de New World TV d'être la chaîne de tous les africains.

Des noms aussi prestigieux que Emmanuel Adebayor, Wilfrid Mbappé, Patrick Mboma, Basile Boli, Eric Di Meco, ou encore Mamadou Niang vous accompagneront pendant 14 heures de programmes en direct par jour !

Pour être sûr que vous, nos compatriotes Africains, ne manquerez rien de la plus prestigieuse des compétitions sportives, nous nous sommes engagés à ce que votre abonnement reste le moins cher jamais offert. Nos partenaires régionaux des plus grands opérateurs de téléphonie mobile vous proposent des forfaits adaptés à tous les budgets (quotidiens, hebdomadaires et mensuels).

New World TV est la seule destination pour pouvoir visionner en français et en langues locales “le meilleur de la Coupe du Monde, partout et tout le temps”.

Pour toute information et pour vivre la plus complète des Coupes du Monde, rapprochez-vous de votre opérateur de téléphonie mobile pour une offre adaptée à votre budget.

28 matchs en clair
New World TV, également détenteur exclusif des droits en clair pour toute l'Afrique Sub-Saharienne en dehors de l'Afrique du Sud, a aussi pensé à ceux qui n'ont pas les moyens de s'abonner pour visionner les matchs gratuitement. C'est la raison pour laquelle elle a acquis ces droits, pour les sous-licencier aux chaînes nationales, garantissant là encore une exposition sans précédent pour une Coupe du Monde de football.

Le Conseil européen a annoncé vendredi (18 novembre) qu’il avait donné son feu vert aux négociations sur le renforcement de la présence de Frontex, l’agence européenne des frontières, en Albanie, en Serbie, en Bosnie-Herzégovine et au Monténégro.

Komárom városa idénymunkásokat keres a téli hóeltakarításhoz. A város a lakosok sorából szeretné biztosítani a téli munkák végzését, elsősorban a járdák hótól való megtisztítását – tájékoztatott a városháza.

Le Ministère de la Santé a rendu publics les derniers chiffres liés à la pandémie de la Covid-19 en Algérie. Le bilan de ce vendredi 18 novembre 2022 indique que le nombre de contaminations quotidiennes a observé une légère baisse, pour s’établir de nouveau au-dessous de la barre symbolique des dix cas par jours. Le […]

L’article Covid-19 en Algérie : légère baisse des contaminations ce 18 novembre est apparu en premier sur .

Le gouvernement français a fait vendredi (18 novembre) un premier bilan de son plan France 2030, lancé en octobre 2021, consacré à l’innovation pour la transition. En 2022, ce sont ainsi plus de 10 milliards d’euros qui ont été investis. Autant le seront en 2023.

L'Union européenne a fait part de sa volonté de créer un nouveau fonds destiné à indemniser les catastrophes naturelles causées par le changement climatique, à condition que la Chine y participe et que les objectifs soient rehaussés.

Az Európai Néppárt (EPP) teljes jogú tagja lett pénteken az OĽANO – jelentette be Manfred Weber, a pártcsalád elnöke és Eduard Heger kormányfő a szavazást követően – tájékoztatott Lisszabonból a TASR tudósítója.

Hundreds of mangrove seedlings are growing in a small bay of an island south of Fiji's main island Viti Levu. The Pacific Island Countries are vulnerable to climate change and need resources to adapt. Credit: Tom Vierus/Climate Visuals

By Labanya Prakash Jena
Sharm El-Sheikh, Nov 18 2022 (IPS)

The Pacific Island Countries (PICs) – 14 small island developing nations in the Pacific Ocean – comprise one of the most exposed and vulnerable regions to climate change and natural calamities. The region did not cause this climate crisis; the crisis stemmed from heavy carbon emissions by developed countries. Yet paradoxically, the countries in the region are also the least resourced to adapt to climate change.

The IMF estimates that the PICs need an additional investment of an average of 9% of GDP on developing climate-resilient infrastructure over the next ten years. Some countries’ climate-resilient infrastructure needs more than 10% of their GDP. However, this much capital mobilisation is impossible for the region with low per capita income, volatile economy, lack of fiscal space, and low saving rate. Besides, these countries have also committed to ambitious targets to decarbonize their economies.

In this scenario, international climate finance mobilisation is critical to make the region resilient and prosperous. The longer the delay in building the much-needed climate-resilient infrastructure, the higher the cost and greater the risk of exposing these countries to extreme events for a longer time.

Labanya Prakash Jena, Commonwealth Regional Climate Finance Adviser, Indo-Pacific Region, argues international climate finance mobilisation is critical to make Pacific Island Countries resilient and prosperous. Credit: Commonwealth

Tackling the bottlenecks

There are two primary bottlenecks to international climate flows: institutional structure and lack of capacity at various levels. The PIC region’s institutional structure is plagued by limited administrative and financial capabilities, inadequate program management and accountability, and an obscure audit system to mobilise international public climate finance.

In addition, these countries lack the capacity to design and structure projects and develop a robust and tangible climate adaptation project pipeline. Besides, the region is not strategically allocating available capital, including budgetary outlays, international climate finance, development aid, and private finance. The primary focus of international institutions must be to address these challenges quickly.

Options for international climate finance: Grants, debt, equity

The total GDP of the PIC region is only about USD10 billion, with an average per capita income of approximately USD4,000 and a gross capital formation rate of 20%, according to the World Bank. This translates to a maximum domestic capital mobilisation of USD 2 billion per year. Meanwhile, the IMF estimates that the region needs an additional capital of USD 1 billion per annum for climate resilience infrastructure investment.

International grant capital is the only option to fund climate adaptation projects in the region. The reason is that any form of debt capital, even if in the form of concessional debt capital over the long term, is not an economical one. The PIC region cannot pay back debt, and it is unlikely the region’s economic size will increase at a rapid rate in the future to pay back debt.

Although the region’s primary sources of international climate finance – the Green Climate Fund (GCF), World Bank, and Asian Development Bank (ADB) – provide grants, it is only for project preparation and capacity development. These financers mostly provide debt financing, albeit at a better rate than private financers.

However, the low debt servicing ability of the region arrests them, raising foreign debt capital. It is even more problematic if the debt capital is in foreign currency (e.g., USD) – the borrowers face huge foreign currency due to expected and unexpected devaluation in the local currency, and borrowers face currency risk.

Equity capital is not the best form of financing for climate adaptation projects. Unlike climate change mitigating projects, they do not generate clear cash flows as the beneficiaries are difficult to identify to monetize climate adaptation projects. Hence, equity capital is not an efficient source of capital for climate adaptation projects.

Strategic allocation of capital is key

Unlike developed and developing countries, the PIC region does not have a have strong domestic financial and banking sector, and it rarely attracted foreign capital for large-scale investment. So, it is futile to expect large-scale private financing flows to bridge the financing gaps for their climate actions.

Moreover, the public goods nature of climate adaptation projects does not attract private financers. Hence, public financing, including capital Government budgetary outlays, international climate finance, and other development aids must be spent judiciously.

The crux is strategically allocating the available capital and aligning projects’ needs with the mandates of the public finances. One of the most efficient ways is to carve out the climate financing as a separate portfolio and decide where and how the capital would be used in various climate adaptation projects.

In addition, the climate change divisions of these countries can work closely with the Ministry of finance to mainstream climate adaptation in national development plans and sector policies and bring climate change perspectives in economic decision-making. The countries can also need to identify the projects which offer dual benefits of climate migration and adaptation, which brings a lot of attention to global climate financers.

For example, nature-based carbon sequestration through ocean conservation, forestry, and wilding (wetland, grassland) sequestrates carbon, offers natural shields, and protects human life and properties in extreme weather events. The global impact investors will find these projects attractive as they help the region become climate-resilient and create a global public good, helping everyone, including the financer’s country.

Way forward

International institutions must support Pacific Island countries to strengthen administrative and financial structures for better transparency and accountability, which can help the PICs access global public capital. In addition, Governments in the region must strategically allocate climate finance, prioritise climate actions in decision-making, integrate adaptation projects with national climate action plans, and identify suitable projects offering dual climate mitigation and adaptation benefits.

The international institutions can also help the countries identify and design projects to develop pipeline projects for funding. There is a dire need to develop institutional and local capacity to meet the needs of climate change-related economic activities in the region. But if addressed, the region will be able to finally make headway in addressing the deep adaptation challenges they face due to climate change.

• Labanya Prakash Jena is the Commonwealth Regional Climate Finance Adviser for the Indo-Pacific Region.

IPS UN Bureau

 

Follow @IPSNewsUNBureau
!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],p=/^http:/.test(d.location)?'http':'https';if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src=p+'://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js';fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document, 'script', 'twitter-wjs');  

Le taux de criminalité ne cesse d’accroître. Chaque jour, de nombreuses affaires liées aux agressions et aux meurtres secouent la société et créent la polémique au sujet de l’application de la peine capitale dans notre pays. Hier, le ministre de la Justice, garde des Sceaux, Abderrachid Tabi, a évoqué ce point lors d’une séance consacrée […]

L’article Peine capitale en Algérie : les précisions du ministre de la Justice est apparu en premier sur .

An ideologically driven EU packaging law based on rigid targets could end up endangering the food packaging and the food system value chain, Finnish MEP Elsi Katainen told EURACTIV in an interview.

An overhaul of the EU packaging and packaging waste directive (PPWD), the main EU-level instrument dealing with placing on the market packaging and requirements for its end-of-life, is due 30 November.