Ref. Ares(2020)5008031 - 24/09/2020
EUROPEAN COMMISSION
DIRECTORATE-GENERAL
CLIMATE ACTION
The Director-General
Brussels
Frida Kieninger,
Food & Water Action Europe
Rue d'Edimbourg 26
1050 Ixelles
Belgium
Advance copy by email: ask+request-8396-
xxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxx.xxx
Subject:
Your application for access to documents – Ref GestDem No 2020/4580
Dear Ms Kieninger,
We refer to your e-mail dated 24 July 2020 in which you make a request for access to
documents, registered on 27 July 2020 under the above-mentioned reference number.
You requested access to:
i.
All correspondence (including email) between 1st December 2019 and 12 July
2020 between Commissioner Timmermans, and/or their cabinets and/or officials
from DG CLIMA on one hand and representatives from IOGP, Shell, Total, BP,
Equinor, ZEP, the Global CCS Institute, Hydrogen Europe, the Hydrogen
Council, Business Europe, the European Roundtable for Industry, GasNaturally,
Eurogás, ENTSO-G, Snam, Enagás, Fluxys, Open Grid Europe, GRTGaz,
Teréga, Eurofer, ArcelorMittal, FTI Consulting, Fleishman Hillard, Alstom,
Engie, Air Liquide, Toyota, Gas for Climate consortium, Gas Infrastructure
Europe on the other, in which the revision of TEN-E was addressed.
ii.
List of meetings between 1st December 2019 and 12 July 2020 between officials
and representatives of DG CLIMA on one hand and representatives from IOGP,
Shell, Total, BP, Equinor, ZEP, the Global CCS Institute, Hydrogen Europe, the
Hydrogen Council, Business Europe, the European Roundtable for Industry,
GasNaturally, Eurogás,ENTSO-G, Snam, Enagás, Fluxys, Open Grid Europe,
GRTGaz, Teréga, Eurofer, ArcelorMittal, FTI Consulting, Fleishman Hillard,
Alstom, Engie, Air Liquide, Toyota, Gas for Climate consortium, Gas
Commission européenne/Europese Commissie, 1049 Bruxelles/Brussel, BELGIQUE/BELGIË - Tel. +32 22991111
Office: BU24 01/078 - Tel. direct line +32 229-50164
Infrastructure Europe on the other, in which the revision of TEN-E was
addressed.
iii.
Minutes of the meetings mentioned above”
We have identified 39 documents that fall under the scope of your application. The list of
identified documents is enclosed with this letter.
In accordance with Article 4(4) of Regulation (EC) 1049/2001, DG CLIMA has
consulted those third parties concerning the disclosure of the requested documents
emanating from them.
Please find the documents enclosed with this letter. However, I regret to inform you that I
cannot grant access to documents 30 and 36 and some parts of documents 1, 3-16, 18-20,
22-28, 31, 38 and 39.
A complete disclosure of the above-mentioned documents is prevented by the exception
concerning the protection of privacy and the integrity of the individual outlined in Article
4(1)(b) of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001, because they contain: names and contact
information of Commission staff members not pertaining to the senior management; names
and contact details of other natural persons and other information relating to an identified or
identifiable natural person.
Article 9(1)(b) of the Data Protection Regulation does not allow the transmission of these
personal data, except if you prove that it is necessary to have the data transmitted to you
for a specific purpose in the public interest and where there is no reason to assume that
the legitimate interests of the data subject might be prejudiced. In your request, you do
not express any particular interest to have access to these personal data nor do you put
forward any arguments to establish the necessity to have the data transmitted for a
specific purpose in the public interest.
Consequently, I conclude that, pursuant to Article 4(1)(b) of Regulation (EC) No
1049/2001, access cannot be granted to the personal data contained in the requested
documents, as the need to obtain access thereto for a purpose in the public interest has not
been substantiated and there is no reason to think that the legitimate interests of the
individuals concerned would not be prejudiced by disclosure of the personal data concerned.
As regards documents 30 and 36, in the course of the consultation the third party indicated
partial access is not possible because the documents are “personal exchanges of emails with
private aspects”. The disclosure of these two documents is prevented under the exception of
the protection of privacy and the integrity of the individual as set out in Article 4(1)(b) of
Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001.
In case you would disagree with this position, you are entitled, in accordance with Article
7(2) of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001, to submit a confirmatory application requesting the
Commission to review this position.
Such a confirmatory application should be addressed within 15 working days upon receipt
of this letter to the Secretariat-General of the Commission at the following address:
European Commission
Secretariat-General
2
Unit C.1. ‘Transparency, Document Management and Access to Documents’
BERL 7/076
B-1049 Brussels, or by email to:
xxxxxxxxxx@xx.xxxxxx.xx
Yours sincerely,
(e-signed)
Mauro PETRICCIONE
3
Electronically signed on 22/09/2020 09:11 (UTC+02) in accordance with article 4.2 (Validity of electronic documents) of Commission Decision 2004/563