BRUGEL adopts its 2026 staffing plan despite unfavorable union opinion

The board of directors of Bruxelles Gaz Electricité (BRUGEL), the Brussels energy regulator, adopted decision 400 on July 8, 2026, establishing the institution’s staffing plan for the year 2026, for a total of 39.75 full-time equivalents (FTE). The decision, referenced C-2026/006515, was published in the Belgian Official Gazette on September 8, 2026, page 49268.

BRUGEL is the body responsible for the regulation of the electricity and gas market in the Brussels-Capital Region, created by the ordinance of July 19, 2001, relating to the organization of the electricity market (Article 30bis). The staffing plan is determined upon the proposal of the director responsible for human resources, in accordance with the Decree of the Government of the Brussels-Capital Region of September 29, 2022, regarding the administrative and financial status of BRUGEL staff (Article 7).

An unfavorable union opinion

The draft 2026 staffing plan was submitted for union consultation within the framework of the BRUGEL basic consultation committee. The trade union organizations issued an unfavorable opinion on the project.

The Secretaries of State responsible for Energy and Water, respectively, who were requested for their opinions, did not provide an opinion within the allotted one-month period. Nevertheless, the decision was adopted upon the proposal of the director responsible for human resources.

A workforce of 39.75 FTE

The 2026 staffing plan, detailed in Annex 1 of the decision, distributes jobs by rank and grade. The overall total stands at 39.75 FTE, including 19.08 FTE of statutory staff (CTAS), 1.00 FTE of contractual staff (CBET), and 19.67 FTE complementary staff.

The main grades provided for in the plan are as follows:

• A310 BRUGEL Director: 2.00 FTE
• A220 First Engineer: 1.00 FTE
• A210 Expert Advisor: 3.00 FTE
• A200 First Attaché: 4.00 FTE
• A111 Engineer: 3.00 FTE
• A101 Attaché: 14.07 FTE
• B101 Assistant: 5.06 FTE
• C101 Deputy: 2.92 FTE

General management grades (Director General, Deputy Director General, Director-Head of Department, Engineer-Director) are set at 0.00 FTE for the year 2026.

Scope of the decision

The decision enters into force on the day of its approval and was approved by the board of directors of BRUGEL. It was signed in Brussels on July 8, 2026, by K. Welch, President, and E. Mannes, Director.

This staffing plan, adopted despite the unfavorable opinion of the trade union organizations, establishes the workforce framework of the Brussels energy regulator for the 2026 financial year. It directly concerns the agents of the Brussels-Capital Region and the stakeholders of the Brussels energy sector, who will find the official distribution of jobs by grade for the current year.

Source: Belgian Official Gazette of September 8, 2026, p. 49268 — Decision 400 of July 8, 2026 regarding the staffing plan of Bruxelles Gaz Electricité (BRUGEL) for the year 2026, reference C-2026/006515.