EU leaders agree on steps to overcome energy crisis – media reports
European Council President Charles Michel (Photo:REUTERS/Johanna Geron)
The European Union has agreed to press ahead with a set of emergency actions to address the bloc’s energy crisis, the Bloomberg news agency reported on Oct. 21.
“We also sent a clear signal to the market,” European Council President Charles Michel said at a news conference early on Oct. 21.
“It means that we are ready to act together, that we’re able to work together and there’s strong political willingness. I’m confident that there will be an effect very soon.”
After hours of intense negotiations, the leaders said in their joint summit conclusions that they had asked the EU’s executive arm to propose a “temporary dynamic price corridor on natural gas transactions to immediately limit episodes of excessive gas prices.”
They also said they would pursue a temporary framework to cap the price of gas in electricity generation, including a cost and benefit analysis.
“We will develop a complementary new index to reflect better the LNG price situation and for the meantime we will establish a market correction mechanism to limit episodes of excessive gas prices,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said at a news conference.
“We will work with energy ministers to submit a legal proposal to operationalize the market mechanism.”
According to Bloomberg, the leaders also asked for steps to avoid extreme price spikes and to use their joint purchasing power as leverage in negotiations with global gas suppliers.
Heading into the summit, Michel said it was a “moment of truth” for Europe as it confronts the toughest winter in decades, with economies staggering under the double blows of high inflation and record energy prices.
In early September, von der Leyen called for a cap on the price of Russian gas “in Europe and around the world.” As an example, she cited plans to introduce a price ceiling for Russian oil. However, she admitted that not all countries would take such a step.
Later, the UK’s Guardian daily newspaper, referring to the draft regulation of the European Commission, reported that the European Union would not introduce price restrictions on Russian or any imported gas, but insists on the introduction of taxes on the “excess” profits of energy companies.
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