The Council of the European Union adopted on Friday a resolution on the voluntary reduction of demand for natural gas by 15% in the cold season in the hope of increasing the security of energy supply of the member countries, writes news.ro.

The new rules will be published early next week, will come into effect the following day, and will allow the Council to activate a security of supply “alert”, in which case a reduction in gas demand becomes mandatory.

The aim of reducing gas demand is to save for this winter to prepare for possible disruptions in gas supplies from Russia, which is constantly using energy supplies as a weapon, the EU Council said in a press release.

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Member countries have agreed to reduce their gas demand by 15% compared to their average consumption over the past five years, between August 1, 2022 and March 31, 2023, with measures of their own choosing.

While all Member States will make every effort to achieve reductions, the Council has identified a number of exceptions and possibilities for partial, and in some cases full, derogations from the mandatory reduction target to reflect the specific situations of Member States and to ensure that gas cuts have been effective in improving security of supply in the EU, the quoted source also indicated.

What the Council of the EU decided

The EU Council agreed that member states that are not connected to the gas networks of other member states are exempted from mandatory gas shutdowns, as they will not be able to release significant volumes of gas for the benefit of other member states.

Member states whose electricity grids are not synchronized with the European energy system and which depend more on gas for electricity generation will also be exempted if they are desynchronized with a third country’s grid to avoid the risk of an electricity supply crisis.

Member States may limit their reduction target to meet their demand reduction obligations if they have limited interconnections with other Member States and can demonstrate that their export capacity and domestic LNG infrastructure are used to the maximum extent possible for diversion gases to other member states.

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Member States can also limit their reduction target if they have exceeded their gas stock targets, if they are highly dependent on gas as a feedstock for critical industries, or can use a different calculation method if their gas consumption has increased by at least 8% in the past compared to the average for the last five years.

When a gas warning can go off

The member states also agreed to strengthen the Council’s role in initiating “union alarm.” The warning will be activated by an implementing decision of the Council acting on the basis of the Commission’s proposal.

The Commission presents a proposal to initiate a “Union Alert” in the event of a significant risk of a serious shortage of gas supply or an unusually high demand for gas, or in the event that at least five Member States that have declared an alert at national level request this from the Commission.

When choosing measures to reduce demand, Member States agreed to prioritize measures that do not affect protected consumers, such as households and services essential to the functioning of society, such as critical facilities, health care and the defense sector.

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Possible measures include reducing gas consumption in the electricity sector, measures to encourage industrial fuel switching, national information campaigns, specific commitments to reduce heating and cooling, and market measures such as tenders between enterprises.

An order to reduce gas demand will be published next week

Member States will update their national emergency plans, which will identify the demand reduction measures they plan, and will periodically report to the Commission on the progress of their plans.

The regulation was officially adopted through a written procedure. The adoption was the result of a political agreement reached by ministers during an extraordinary meeting of the Energy Council on July 26.

The regulation will be published in the Official Journal of the EU and will enter into force the following day.

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The regulation is an exceptional and extraordinary measure that is valid for a limited period.

It will be in place for one year and the Commission will conduct a review by May 2023 to consider its extension in light of the overall EU gas supply situation, the source said.

Why were these measures taken?

The EU faces a potential security of supply crisis due to a significant reduction in gas supplies from Russia and a serious risk of a total disruption, for which member states must prepare immediately, in a coordinated manner and in a spirit of solidarity.

Although not all Member States currently face a significant risk to security of supply, serious disruptions in some Member States will affect the EU economy as a whole.

The Regulation complements existing legislation and EU initiatives that guarantee safe gas supply for citizens and protect consumers from serious disruptions in supply, in particular Regulation (EU) 2017/1938 on the security of gas supply.

This regulation follows other initiatives already underway to improve the EU’s security of gas supply and sustainability, including the gas storage regulation, the creation of an EU energy platform for joint procurement and the initiatives listed in the REPowerEU plan.