EU countries seek more flexibility on gas storage targets

EU countries seek more flexibility on gas storage targets

By Kate Abnett

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European Union countries have pushed back on a European Commission plan to keep the bloc's binding storage goals for two more years, demanding that the targets are made more flexible, EU diplomats told Reuters.

The European Commission on Wednesday proposed keeping Europe's binding targets to fill gas storage until 2027 - resisting calls from some countries to soften the goals, although the EU executive did say it would be more lenient in enforcing them.

That has not satisfied the concerns of some member countries, who at a meeting of diplomats from EU countries on Thursday demanded more flexibility on the rules, EU diplomats told Reuters.

Governments including Germany and the Netherlands had warned the EU's storage filling requirements are pushing up gas prices, by indicating to the market that European buyers are obliged to buy, leaving a hefty bill for countries with large storage caverns.

The EU targets include a binding aim to fill gas storage caverns to 90% of capacity by November 1 each year, plus a series of intermediate targets in the months leading up to November.

In particular, countries want softer targets during the summer months, to give them more flexibility about how they reach the final November goal.

Two of the diplomats said a majority of the EU's 27 member countries had backed the call for softer targets in the meeting on Thursday.

EU countries will now negotiate and approve the extension of the targets with the European Parliament - giving them a chance to potentially amend the rules.

The gas storage goals were introduced in 2022 after Russia slashed gas deliveries, to ensure EU countries had a buffer of stored fuel during the winter months when gas demand for heating peaks.

(Reporting by Kate Abnett; editing by David Evans)