Energy “Lent” in the EU: The plan for the winter – Splits the cap on natural gas

By Chrysostomos Tsoufis

Lent, the most important and oldest fasting period of Orthodoxy, prepares Christians for the greatest feast of Orthodoxy, Easter. Ursula Von der Leyen’s announcements on Wednesday – poetic license – inaugurate for the European citizens the “Lent of Waiting” which everyone hopes will lead to the energy Easter, in essence to make the winter as painless as possible and lay the foundations for the gradual solution of the problem for the coming years.

The first major station of this period is September 30. Until then, the energy ministers of the Eurozone have at their disposal to study the Commission’s proposals and at their extraordinary meeting on the same day to agree on a framework for reducing prices and saving energy. I remind you that, among other things, the proposals of the president of the European Commission include a mandatory goal to save energy during peak hours, a ceiling on the revenues of electricity producers that do not use natural gas and a solidarity levy for the oil, coal and lignite industry and liquidity measures for energy companies. In the Commission’s proposals, there was finally no imposition of a ceiling on the price of natural gas, an issue that divides the member states and, as things show, the decisions on this are postponed over time.

The baton is being taken by the European leaders who are meeting informally in Prague on October 6-7. Most analysts do not currently see white smoke in that Summit but in the official one, in Brussels on October 20-21. In between, another meeting of energy ministers will have been inserted with the aim of putting the final touches on an agreement text if everything goes according to plan and expectations.

The developments in the energy sector will directly affect those in the economy, which is why the finance ministers will also be watching with particular interest during this period. It went down the drain, but last Friday there was also an informal meeting of the Eurogroup which found that although the escape clause is still active this year – as things stand at the moment, the margins are small and support measures must be targeted at weaker and temporary.

However, things may change and their hands may be untied depending on the Commission’s announcements on the fiscal policy of 2023, which are expected in October. Ursula von der Leyen dropped some hints on Wednesday, saying that Brussels will propose greater flexibility in debt relief that naturally favors over-indebted countries but with greater accountability for delivering on what has been agreed to satisfy its ..thrifts Prey.

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