Legislative changes affecting energy trading in Hungary and the regulator’s interpretation

Important changes were introduced in the Hungarian legal system in February 2021 which have a significant impact on energy trading. The core amendments include the following, but important questions remained unanswered about the provisions.

• The category of “limited power trading license” was removed from the Hungarian Electricity Act.
• The statutory regulatory fee of energy traders has been increased from 0.075% of the net turnover of the previous year to 0.085%.

First of all, it has been unclear what will happen to the existing limited power trading licenses. Additionally, it has been ambiguous how the new 0.085% rate will affect the fees payable in 2021, especially for the first and second quarter of the year.

During the afternoon of  9 April 2021, we received an official statement from the HEPURA making it clear how the authority interprets the new changes.