Joint EU gas purchases may begin by summer
2023.01.16 12:58
Joint EU gas purchases may begin by summer
By Tiffany Smith
Budrigannews.com – According to European Commission Vice-President Maros Sefcovic on Monday, the goal of the European Commission is for EU nations to begin purchasing gas together “well before summer.” This is an effort to assist nations in replenishing their storage and preventing a shortage of supplies in the winter.
Sefcovic stated that he had urged member states to quickly engage with market players in their countries to estimate the volumes of gas they will jointly purchase following a first meeting of country representatives from the European Union to coordinate the planned purchases.
Sefcovic asked the industry if they would be interested in joining the EU’s scheme to buy gas together. The Commission hopes that this will help Europe fill empty storage caverns and negotiate lower prices by using the buying power of the countries.
He stated in a statement, “We are working on a tight schedule to prepare in time for the next winter and the storage refilling season.”
According to officials from the EU, some large energy companies have been reluctant to join because they are already able to negotiate their own gas deals and are concerned that the EU scheme will not result in lower prices.
In order to attract offers from suppliers, the Commission intends to publish the quantity of gas that European nations intend to jointly purchase in the early spring.
EU nations must ensure that their domestic businesses participate in the aggregation of gas demand volumes equal to 15% of the gas required to fill their storage facilities to 90% capacity.
According to Eurostat data, the EU’s total gas imports in 2021 were 338 billion cubic meters (bcm), so the 15% requirement equates to approximately 13.5 billion cubic meters of gas across the entire region.
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