The European Commission's Interim Report is critical of price-based mechanisms and calls for harmonized methods to determine generation adequacy levels and reliability standards.

The European Commission (Commission) published its Interim Report and Staff Working Document (SWD) on capacity mechanisms on 13 April 2016. As part of the sector inquiry (the first into State aid), the Commission reviewed responses from 124 organizations, including public bodies, energy regulators, network operators and market participants commercially active in the 11 Member States covered. The report and SWD describe capacity mechanisms across Member States and come to a number of tentative conclusions as to how the Commission considers the mechanisms could be improved to create a better functioning and competitive electricity market in Europe. The report is now open for consultation until 6 July 2016.