Concrete agreements on energy prices are not forthcoming at EU summit in Brussels
At the EU summit in Brussels, European leaders hardly made any concrete agreements about tackling the sky-high energy prices. On behalf of the leaders, the committee will investigate a price limit on the purchase of gas. The possibility of joint purchasing gas by the EU countries is also being examined.
It is not yet clear how exactly gas will be purchased. That will be worked out later on, as it turned out on the second and last day of the summit. Prime Minister Rutte said afterwards that there is no simple solution to the problem of high energy prices, because “thousands of contracts and hundreds of parties” are involved in the energy market.
Rutte says that it will even take time for the European countries to actually buy gas together and that it will also be free. He points out that the knowledge about gas purchasing is, but not in Brussels, such as the Netherlands.
“We have very good people from Gasunie, Gasterra and other organizations,” says Rutte. “We are prepared to put it at the service. Other countries will do the same, but that takes time.”
Market power
According to Rutte, the advantage of purchasing gas together is that European countries can set more requirements. The prime minister sees less benefit in a gas price limit, with European countries saying that they are setting a maximum amount for the purchase of gas.
“I also want the gas to be delivered,” says Rutte, who fears that Russia will no longer supply gas if there is a price limit. “The progress of this plan thinks that Russia can deliver, because they cannot prevent to China. But you can take risks. Also Germany and Austria, among others, see little in such a price limit, people in Southern Europe think more positively about it .
Commission president von der Leyen is positive about the outcome of the summit. “Instead of outbidding each other and driving up prices, we are pooling our demand,” she said. The purchase of gas should be done in the same way as with the European purchase of corona vaccines.
Full gas storages
Rutte does expect that countries will soon be obliged to fill their gas storage facilities. The Netherlands has many gas storage facilities. There is a fear that, if gas prices fall, the Netherlands has a lot of expensive gas in the ground.
“The agreement is that countries will pay whatever it costs,” Rutte said. “Then it has been agreed that we will get the fair price.”
EU leaders later discussed what to do with gas storage facilities that should not have had enough gas in stock last year. Last week, the committee discussed the option of expropriating companies.