17.7.2023

Official Journal of the European Union

C 252/18

(Case C-205/23, Engie România)

(2023/C 252/20)

Language of the case: Romanian

Referring court

Parties to the main proceedings

Appellant: Engie România SA

Respondent: Autoritatea Națională de Reglementare în Domeniul Energiei

Questions referred

1.Can an alleged breach of the duty of transparency incumbent on natural gas suppliers in their dealings with household consumers, which has been implemented in national legislation and is treated under that legislation as an administrative offence (contravenția), also result in the competent national authority’s requiring a natural gas supplier to apply, in dealings with consumers, a price imposed by administrative means that takes no account of the principle of freedom to fix prices in the natural gas market, that principle being established by Article 3(1) of Directive 2009/73/EC? (1)

2.Can the fact that a natural gas supplier has been fined both by the consumer protection authority and by the energy sector regulatory authority, by means of two separate reports of offences imposing the same measures on the supplier (duplication of administrative acts imposing measures), be regarded as a justified restriction of the principle ne bis in idem, under the provisions of Article 52 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, or is it a breach of that principle? Does such a combination of acts imposing the same measures on the basis of the same facts, drawn up by different authorities, comply with the principle of proportionality?

*

Directive 2009/73/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 July 2009 concerning common rules for the internal market in natural gas and repealing Directive 2003/55/EC (OJ 2009 L 211, p. 94).