EU Energy Council to decide on gas price cap, synchronization declaration due on sidelines

VILNIUS – The European Union’s (EU) energy ministers will seek to extend the period of application of the emergency measures adopted last December to tackle the energy crisis, including the gas price cap, at the meeting of the Union’s Transport, Telecommunications and Energy Council (Energy) in Brussels on Tuesday.

In addition, EU Energy Commissioner Kadri Simson and the energy ministers of Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and Poland are expected to sign an updated political declaration on the synchronization of the Baltic countries' electricity grids with Western Europe in February 2025 on the sidelines of the meeting.

According to the Council, the market correction mechanism, which entered into force on February 1 this year and was due to remain in effect for one year, and which also provides for a 180-euro per megawatt-hour (MWh) gas price ceiling, is to be extended for another year, until January 31, 2025.

The trigger conditions for the gas price cap, approved by the Community’s energy ministers last December, are that the benchmark TTF front-month contract price exceeds 180 euros per MWh and is also at least 35 euros per MWh higher than a reference global LNG price for three consecutive working days.

EU energy ministers are also expected to agree on Tuesday to extend for one year the other two measures adopted last December to address the energy crisis.

In particular, the solidarity-enhancing mechanism providing for joint gas purchases should be extended until December 31, 2024, and the measure to accelerate the deployment of renewable energy – until June 30, 2025.