The EU countries have not managed yet to create a mechanism to influence gas prices on the level of the Exchange, a participant of the gas market in Greece told TASS. He was speaking after a meeting of the EU energy ministers in Luxembourg.
So far, there is no understanding how such a mechanism should function, the industry expert added.
"They have an intention [to create the mechanism to influence prices], but in fact there are very few ways not to violate either contractual obligations or to stimulate some kind of conflict of the parties in the future. Some countries say that it is necessary to cap prices for gas only for Russia, which is discrimination, while others say that it is necessary to impose a price cap for everyone.
Naturally, the main, largest supplier of liquefied natural gas (LNG), the United States, is not interested in this, therefore they cannot agree," the expert explained.
In his opinion, the EU countries "are trying to come up with some mechanisms to influence prices at the exchange level in order to prevent volatility."
"But at the moment they have neither a clear mechanism nor an understanding of how this mechanism works, therefore, in general, they did not agree," the source said.
When asked about the prospects for work on the regulation of gas trading on the Dutch TTF exchange by the EU, the expert stressed that "at the moment, a mechanism that would fully satisfy both from a legal and economic point of view has not been developed."
"If they come up with something, in any case, it must somehow be coordinated, as far as I understand, both with all countries and with the participants of the exchange itself, so at the moment I cannot make any assumptions about how they will apply this mechanism directly within the exchange," the expert noted.
Gazprom's warning
Gazprom very clearly warned that if the EU countries introduce a price cap [for natural gas], and if at some point the contract price set by Gazprom is higher, the company can stop deliveries, as there will be no agreement on the price, the expert recalled.
"Naturally, this can lead to an even larger increase in prices, provoke their growth," the source said.
Earlier, the European Commission presented a new package of measures to combat the energy crisis in the European Union. In particular, it proposed to introduce dynamic pricing for natural gas on the European TTF exchange in the Netherlands. This measure is expected to be temporary until the EC develops a new LNG price benchmark by March 2023. In addition, the EC considers necessary the mandatory joint purchase of gas by the EU member states at the level of 15% of the total demand, as well as the reduction of monthly energy consumption by 15%.
The European Commission entrusted the development of practical measures to the heads of energy ministries. At their meeting in Luxembourg on October 25, EU energy ministers tried to eliminate differences on the issues of joint purchases of gas by EU states and setting prices for it, but they did not come to a common opinion. The Czech Republic, which currently holds the EU presidency, suggested that energy ministers meet again in November to try to agree on all these issues.
Europe’s energy crisis raises firewood prices, theft fears
Europe’s energy crisis, has forced some people to turn to cheaper heating sources like firewood as the weather gets colder. In the former Soviet republic of Moldova, leaders worry that this winter could be devastating for many of its people because of the high cost of electricity and heat, with European natural gas prices roughly triple what they were in early 2021.
In Poland, demand for small firewood from state forests grew 46% and larger firewood was up 42% through the end of August from a year earlier. Germany’s statistics agency says prices for firewood and wood pellets made from sawdust that can be used in central home heating rose over 85% in August from a year earlier.
In Denmark, the demand for wood-burning stoves is growing along with firewood itself. The Danish sales site DBA said searches for wood pellets have exploded by over 1,300% in the past year.
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