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1. Without prejudice to Directive (EU) 2018/2001, Member States shall promote the uptake of PPAs, including by removing unjustified barriers and disproportionate or discriminatory procedures or charges, with a view to providing price predictability and reaching the objectives set out in their integrated national energy and climate plans with respect to the decarbonisation dimension referred to in Article 4, point (a), of Regulation (EU) 2018/1999, including with respect to renewable energy, while preserving competitive and liquid electricity markets and cross-border trade.

2. When carrying out the review of this Regulation in accordance with Article 69(2), the Commission, after consulting relevant stakeholders, shall assess the potential and viability of one or several Union market platforms for PPAs, to be used on a voluntary basis, including the interaction of those potential platforms with other existing electricity market platforms and the pooling of demand for PPAs through aggregation.

3. Member States shall ensure, in a coordinated manner, that instruments, such as guarantee schemes at market prices, to reduce the financial risks associated to offtaker payment default in the framework of PPAs are in place and accessible to customers that face entry barriers to the PPA market and that are not in financial difficulty. Such instruments may include, inter alia, state-backed guarantee schemes at market prices, private guarantees, or facilities pooling demand for PPAs, in accordance with relevant Union law. To that end, Member States shall ensure appropriate coordination, including with relevant Union-level facilities. Member States may determine the categories of customers that are targeted by those instruments, applying non-discriminatory criteria between and within the categories of customers.

4. Without prejudice to Articles 107 and 108 TFEU, if a guarantee scheme for PPAs is backed by the Member State, it shall include provisions to avoid lowering the liquidity in electricity markets and shall not provide support to the purchase of generation from fossil fuels. Member States may decide to limit those guarantee schemes to the exclusive support of the purchase of electricity from new renewable energy generation in accordance with the Member State’s decarbonisation policies, including in particular where the market for renewables PPAs as defined in Article 2, point (17), of Directive (EU) 2018/2001 is not sufficiently developed.

5. Support schemes for electricity from renewable sources shall allow the participation of projects which reserve part of the electricity for sale through a renewable PPA or other market-based arrangements, provided that such participation does not negatively affect competition in the market, in particular where the two parties involved in that PPA are controlled by the same entity.

6. In the design of the support schemes referred to in paragraph 5, Member States shall endeavour to make use of evaluation criteria to incentivise bidders to facilitate the access of customers that face entry barriers to the PPA market, provided that this does not negatively affect competition in the market.

7. PPAs shall specify the bidding zone of delivery and the responsibility for securing cross-zonal transmission rights in the case of a change of bidding zone in accordance with Article 14.

8. PPAs shall specify the terms and conditions under which customers and producers may exit from PPAs, such as any applicable exit fees and notice periods, in accordance with Union competition law.

9. Member States, when designing measures directly affecting PPAs, shall respect possible legitimate expectations and shall take into account the effect of those measures on existing and future PPAs.

10. By 31 January 2026 and every two years thereafter, the Commission shall assess whether barriers persist, and whether there is sufficient transparency, in the PPA markets. The Commission may draw up specific guidance on removal of barriers in the PPA markets, including disproportionate or discriminatory procedures or charges.