The price of natural gas in Europe fell on Monday to the lowest level in the last two months, as countries stepped up their measures to counter the energy crisis less than two weeks before the start of the heating season, according to Bloomberg, citing Agerpres. .

On Monday morning at the TTF hub in Amsterdam, which sets benchmark natural gas prices in Europe, quotes for next month fell 8.3%, continuing a downward trend that began last week.

Germany, Britain and other European countries plan to spend billions of euros to reduce their dependence on Russian imports by bailing out local energy companies and capping prices to ease the burden on businesses and households.

At around 8:53 a.m. in Amsterdam, natural gas was trading at €175 per megawatt-hour, down 6.8 percent from the previous session’s close, the lowest since July 25.

Measures across Europe to combat rising natural gas prices

Discussions on the European Commission’s proposals aimed at reducing the impact of the energy crisis are ongoing and must also be approved by member states.

The plan involves attracting 140 billion euros from energy companies, as well as mandatory targets for reducing electricity consumption and ensuring liquidity.

The German government on Friday decided to take control of an oil refinery owned by Russian oil group PJSC Rosneft, the first step in a restructuring process that will see Berlin take control of a large part of the energy sector of Europe’s largest economy.

According to sources close to the discussions, the German government is also discussing the nationalization of Germany’s biggest importers, Uniper SE and VNG AG.

Although they have eased in recent weeks, gas prices are still seven times higher than the average for this time of year, fueling inflation and pushing the economy to the brink of recession.

Before the heating season, which begins on October 1, a gradual increase in demand is expected.