There were almost 12 hours of debates, which have resulted in what the President of the Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, has described as “a very good road map”. A series of ways to reduce the bill, but the concrete measures were left in the hands of the ministers and the Commission. The leaders did not expect more, since the differences were very great.
The 27 cited three goals: lower prices, secure supply and reduce demand. The President of the European Council, Charles Michel, recalled his determination after this summit to implement the three objectives set.
European leaders supported putting a ceiling on natural gas purchases. In other words, if the market price fluctuates above the imposed cap, it will not be purchased. The countries believe that with this system the prices will not vary as much as until now where there are very abrupt peaks and falls, reports Esther Herrera, RFI correspondent in Brussels.
Even so, the governments also supported studying the possibility of limiting the price of gas that generates electricity. A proposal supported by some 15 countries, including France and Spain.
Germany had always refused, but finally Foreign Minister Olaf Scholz gave in, at least, so that the European Commission could carry out a study on whether it is feasible for this model —which is already being applied in Spain and Portugal— in the rest of Europe.
contain prices
The same applies to the temporary limitation of transactions in the gas market. Regarding solidarity, the 27 agree on a compulsory mechanism in case of interruption of the gas supply. It’s not that Europeans get warm this winter and others don’t.