European Commission

The COVID-19 pandemic has focused attention on the need for resilient supply chains, including perhaps most importantly, the critical need for sustainable supplies of healthy food.  In line with this, the European Commission (the “Commission”) has published a Communication on a Farm to Fork Strategy (the “Strategy”) where it announces a series of legislative and policy initiatives intended to place sustainability at the center of EU food law and policy by ensuring fair, healthy and environmentally-friendly food systems.  The Strategy is one of the main pillars of the European Green Deal that, in December 2019, the European Commission announced as its policy flagship for the next five years.
Continue Reading The European Commission Announces a Sustainable Food Strategy for Europe

With the assistance of Covington, Unilever submitted the attached paper to the European Commission and a number of National Competition Authorities. It suggests a possible framework for the application of EU competition law to sustainability collaborations between competitors.  The paper is available here.
Continue Reading Sustainability and Competition: Covington Assists Unilever on Submission to European Competition Authorities on the Competition Implications of Sustainability Cooperation

On June 21, 2018, the European Commission (“Commission”) started a new investigation to determine whether so-called destination clauses in Qatar Petroleum’s liquefied natural gas (“LNG”) supply contracts with European buyers infringe the European Union (“EU”) antitrust rules.
Continue Reading European Commission Launches New Antitrust Investigation into LNG Destination Clauses

The International Energy Agency (IEA)’s latest monthly market report, published on November 13, 2015, revealed that the already “massive cushion” of oil stockpiles has inflated further to reach a record level of almost 3 billion barrels.  Following the announcement, oil prices reportedly dropped to a two-month low.

The IEA described this stockpile as “an unprecedented buffer against geopolitical shocks or unexpected supply disruptions.”  The glut in oil supplies is expected to maintain pressure on global oil prices, which many analysts predict will remain at the lower end of a $54-$64.0/bbl range during 2016.

In this post, we highlight two observable trends in the M&A activities of industry participants during 2015 as they navigate the current challenges facing the sector.


Continue Reading What’s the Deal with Low Oil Prices?

On February 25, 2015, the European Commission presented three communications on:

  1. a Framework Strategy for a Resilient Energy Union with a Forward-Looking Climate Change Policy;
  2. Achieving the 10% Electricity Interconnection Target: Making Europe’s Electricity Grid Fit for 2010; and
  3. The Paris Protocol: A Blueprint for Tackling Global Climate Change Beyond 2020.

These

In November, the Court of Justice of the European Union (“CoJ”) held once again that NGOs and persons directly concerned may bring legal actions before national courts against EU Member States that fail to comply with EU mandatory environmental standards.  The CoJ’s decision (CJEU, C-404/13) concerned the UK government’s failure to adopt adequate

Last week, the EU decided to maintain in force its sanctions against Russia, including the sanctions targeting Russia’s energy sector.

The sanctions were adopted on July 31, 2014—by Council Regulation 833/2014 (the Regulation)—and extended on September 12, 2014.  As described in more detail in our recent client alert, the Regulation imposes a licensing requirement

On September 26th the European Commission launched a public consultation on the development of criteria to identify endocrine disrupting chemicals in biocidal and plant protection products.  The consultation is open for contributions until January 16th, 2015, and its results may significantly impact a wide variety of products (e.g., cosmetics, medical devices, pharmaceuticals

On June 5, 2014, the European Union’s Energy Efficiency Directive (“EED”) will become applicable in all EU Member States. This Directive establishes an EU-wide framework aimed at promoting energy efficiency and will provide important challenges and opportunities for companies doing business in Europe.

What is the purpose of the Directive?

The EED is one of