The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, during her visit to Germany, spoke in favor of introducing a maximum possible price for natural gas from Russia. The time has come for this, says von der Leyen. We are talking about the fact that the price for the purchase of Russian gas is set at the level of the EU, by analogy with the decision of the G7, which limits the price of Russian oil. Whether it will be possible to make such a decision will become clear after an emergency meeting of EU energy ministers, scheduled for September 9th.
Gas blackmail, undertaken by Russia against the EU countries for supporting Ukraine, caused a multiple increase in gas and electricity prices. In addition, the Russian Federation earns more from the sale of energy resources than it spends on the war. Therefore, the decision to stop exporting gas from Russia seems obvious, but it has opponents within the EU. Europe has long been accustomed to using Russian gas (in volumes it was up to 40% of total consumption), and there are fears that it will not be possible to obtain the necessary volume of gas from other sources. Limiting Russian gas prices could be a good interim solution. Also proposed are measures to save energy and redistribute the unreasonably high profits of energy companies.
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte is reserved about the proposal to limit the price of Russian gas. He said that the problems in the energy sector of the EU are significant. In addition to setting the maximum allowable purchase price, it is necessary to have a supplier who is ready to supply gas at such a price. Putin has so far demonstrated his willingness to burn gas in giant flares instead of selling it on European terms.
Europe's ability to resist Russian gas blackmail has been higher than expected. The gas storages are already 80% full, while according to the plans this indicator was planned for November. Europe began to receive gas from the USA and Asian countries in large quantities, there are significant gas reserves in Norway. The EU will certainly be able to get through the winter without an energy disaster, although it won't be easy.
Publication Date: 08.09.2022
