Energy Minister Leonore Gewessler (Greens) has reiterated her opposition to a possible price cap for Russian gas imports. “I am not aware of any implementation that will guarantee security of supply for us,” Gewessler said Friday before meeting her EU counterparts in Brussels. Austria has managed to reduce its dependence on Russian gas from 80 percent to 50 percent, “but we are not yet where we need to be.”
For this reason, the European Commission’s proposal cannot be supported at the moment, stressed the Energy Minister. Contingency plans have been drawn up for “all scenarios”, including in the event of a complete cessation of gas supply from Russia.
Reduce power consumption during peak hours
Today’s meeting is about agreeing “quick and quick acting” measures. Gewessler sees a chance of success with the European Commission’s proposal to reduce power consumption during peak hours. “It’s a smart move, we should do it, but that’s not the end of the story,” the energy minister said.
Gewessler also considers skimming so-called random profits a “sensible project” to be discussed “without blinkers.”
The European Commission has put several proposals on the table for EU countries to discuss: reducing electricity consumption, skimming accidental profits, adapting the EU subsidy scheme to support energy suppliers struggling due to the market situation, and a price cap for Russian gas imports. Concrete legal texts will follow shortly.
Source: Krone
I’m an experienced news author and editor based in New York City. I specialize in covering healthcare news stories for Today Times Live, helping to keep readers informed on the latest developments related to the industry. I have a deep understanding of medical topics, including emerging treatments and drugs, the changing laws that regulate healthcare providers, and other matters that affect public health.
