The European Commission is preparing a series of measures in light of a possible supply from Russia
European nervousness is mounting in light of a possible gas cut by Russia. Community reserves “are being filled at a good pace,” said Economy Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni, but the EU is far from being able to completely decouple from Moscow’s supplies. After the gas cut off to Bulgaria and Poland and the reduction in supplies to the Netherlands, Germany and Austria, Brussels’ biggest fear is that Russia will unilaterally cut ties with the Old Continent before the winter, which could happen as early as the following day 21. For this reason, the European Commission plans to start energy conservation this summer, with a plan calling for air conditioning to be limited to 25 degrees and heating to 19 degrees.
The initiative, which will be formally presented in Brussels next Wednesday, provides industry-stop aid and measures for households, and is committed to nuclear and renewable energy. The European proposals revolve around the idea that the EU High Representative for Foreign Policy, Josep Borrell, raised last March when he asked Europeans to turn down the heating. “Shut off the gas in your homes, reduce dependence on those who attack Ukraine,” he claimed during an appearance before the European Parliament.
Increasing energy efficiency is one of the pillars on which the REPowerEU plan is based, which aims to reduce Europe’s energy dependency. The Union imports 90% of the gas it consumes and 40% comes from Moscow. However, the twenty-seven expect to cut their dependency by two-thirds by the end of this year through the import of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from countries like the United States and the promotion of renewable energy sources. This is the great European asset in the long term.
However, in the short and medium term, energy saving is essential and Brussels plans to start now banning the thermostat in public buildings or shopping centers from falling below 25 degrees this summer. It also includes the possible auction of gas capacities so that the industry temporarily cuts its production, which would be the previous step in declaring an energy emergency. At the moment, a cut by Russia would leave European storage reserves at 65% of capacity, far from the 80% target for the start of winter.
Germany was the first Member State to draw up such an emergency plan. With a 60% drop in supply and the threat of further cuts to the Nord Stream I gas pipeline, Berlin activated the second phase of its national emergency plan in June. The country is in energy “alarm” and the German government has increased monitoring of consumption. In the third phase, it is proposed to ration gas, prioritizing the activity of certain industrial sectors over others.
The instruction from Brussels was released a few hours after the meeting held yesterday in Madrid by the Ministry for the Ecological Transition, the energy companies and the social agents to prepare the contingency plan with which it is expected to face a complex end of the year , in which supply interruptions, in particular gas, may be possible.
Several sources present at that meeting, reported José María Camarero, explained to this newspaper that this action program will consist of proposing energy-saving and efficiency measures, accelerating gas substitution through electrification as much as possible and solidarity with other European countries. where the cuts are taking place. can be much more damaging than for Spain, as it depends directly on Russia.
The affiliates of Aelec (the organization that includes Endesa, Iberdrola and EDP) also contributed austerity initiatives and reminded the minister, Teresa Ribera, of the investments in decarbonisation, which “enable progress in energy independence”.
Source: La Verdad
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