Guidelines for Distribution System Operators to Establish Compliance Programs and Appoint Compliance Officers

The document is prepared by the EPA team and the Working Group for the Compliance Program, comprised of experts from relevant stakeholders in the BiH electricity sector. The current process of DSOs unbundling from their respective Vertically Integrated Utilities (VIUs) is ongoing. The establishment of the Compliance Program is one of the important conditions prescribed by the requirements for unbundling DSOs, as stated in Article 26 of Directive 2009/72/EC. The unbundling of DSOs and adoption of the Compliance Program is an obligation of all VIUs in BiH, except for JP Komunalno Brčko, which has less than 100,000 customers. The Compliance Program is based on European best practices and applies them to the current situation in BiH. Its provisions will be applicable only to already unbundled DSOs, i.e., after the completion of the unbundling process of the respective DSO from its VIU. The objective of this document is not to provide recommendations and guidelines of the Compliance Program during the process/transition of DSO unbundling. The Compliance Program establishes specific policies, measures, and procedures that are promoted, actively implemented, and effectively monitored to ensure transparent, objective, and non-discriminatory provision of electricity distribution service. The program is structured into sixteen chapters, with principles and objectives of the Compliance program laid down in Chapter 2. The objectives and purposes of adopting the Compliance Program are to prevent discrimination and promote objectivity and transparency in the provision of electricity distribution public service, prescribe measures and policies to ensure the independence and autonomous operation of the DSO in relation to a VIU, and establish an effective supervision mechanism over the implementation of prescribed measures by the management and employees of the DSO. The principles on which a Compliance Program is based are transparency, objectivity, and non-discrimination in the provision of electricity distribution services, provision of non-discriminatory access to the distribution network users in accordance with the third-party access regulatory rules, and protection of confidential information. The Compliance Program is designed to ensure that the network activities of the DSO, as well as individual employees and the management of the DSO, comply with the principle of non-discrimination. The document outlines the general requirements for all DSOs in BiH, as well as DSO's specific requirements, which are placed in "textboxes" and ensure independence and transparent business relations. The general requirements indicate what needs to be done to fulfill the unbundling requirements from Directive 2009/72. Each chapter contains specific requirements and conditions that need to be defined for each DSO individually. The Compliance Program is based on the principles of independence and autonomy of the DSO in relation to the VIU, as defined by the law, by-laws, and the terms and conditions of the electricity distribution license. The program is designed to ensure that the DSO operates in a transparent, objective, and non-discriminatory manner, and that its network activities comply with the principle of non-discrimination.