The EU Council of Energy Ministers concluded with general statements of unity and solidarity.
Energy Commissioner Kadri Simpson said the payment in rubles for Russian gas – as requested by Moscow – was a violation of European sanctions and could not be accepted.
He added that there would be new legal guidance from the Commission in the coming days.
For his part, the Italian Minister suggested, speaking to Politico, given the legal ambiguity, that companies be allowed to pay in rubles for a few months.
When asked, the commissioner spoke of misleading information, noting that she had spoken to the Minister and summed up that there would be new legal guidance from the Commission in the coming days on what they can and cannot do.
Germany line
Germany is now in favor of imposing a European embargo on the Russian oil market, Economy and Climate Protection Minister Robert Hubeck said earlier in Brussels today, calling for a transitional period of a few weeks. However, he warned of the risk of rising energy prices for both industry and consumers. “The state can not lighten any extra burden,” he said.
“We have created a situation in which Germany can impose an embargo on Russian oil imports, but that does not mean that the supply cut will leave the country unaffected – especially in the east,” Habeck said.
According to the “Progress Report” presented by the Ministry of Economy, Germany’s dependence on Russian oil has been reduced from 35% to 12% and mainly concerns the oil that ends up at the Svend refinery in Brandenburg, which belongs to Rosneft, is associated with the Russian pipeline Drusba (Friendship) and supplies fuel to the greater Berlin area. A letter from the city of Svend to the Minister of Economy was published today, in which he expresses concern about the possibility of an embargo. “We were stunned by your announcements,” local officials wrote. The area refinery currently employs more than 1,200 people.
“The situation there will be somewhat difficult, in case of a sudden interruption. And we can not promise that the supply will always be guaranteed. “There will certainly be big price jumps or supply delays, among other things, but as a country we will not fall into an oil crisis,” Mr Habeck said.
The minister also acknowledged that the consequences of an oil embargo on Russia could not be predicted, as prices could skyrocket worldwide and all oil exporters – including those in Russia – would benefit. “If Putin earns more money by selling less oil, then we have made a hole in the water,” said Robert Habeck.
Consumers in Germany will have to adjust to rising prices, the minister said, as the state can not absorb all the increases. “This is the bitter hard truth,” he added, predicting problems in fragile supply chains, high raw material costs and a shortage of skilled workers. “These are crises that are now piling up on top of each other,” he explained, noting that the middle economy is under pressure. “The pandemic, the expensive energy and the lack of staff are now combined very badly,” he said.
Mr Habeck, however, called on European Union countries to reduce their dependence on Russian energy as soon as possible. “Solidarity with Ukraine now requires a rapid and drastic reduction in fossil fuel supplies from Russia,” he said on the sidelines of the EU’s emergency energy council. Stop the war and go home! “
The need for immediate coordinated measures at central European level to support European consumers, especially vulnerable households and small and medium-sized enterprises, from the explosive increases in energy costs, stressed the Minister of Environment and Energy, Costas Skrekas, who attended the extraordinary meeting. of the EU Council of Energy Ministers today in Brussels.
The places of Athens
The Minister of Environment and Energy, Costas Skrekas, participated in the extraordinary meeting of the EU Council of Energy Ministers, which took place today, May 2, in Brussels, where he reiterated the proposals of the Greek government for imposing a ceiling on the wholesale energy markets and the establishment of a European Solidarity Mechanism, to compensate for the effects of the international energy crisis and to stabilize prices at affordable levels.
Mr. Skrekas conveyed the position of Greece and the Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, for solidarity with Poland and Bulgaria, where gas supplies from Russia have been cut off.
As he said, Greece is ready to support Bulgaria and from the first day of the power outage it has started to supply quantities of natural gas to the neighboring country.
Specifically, Costas Skrekas said: “At today’s Extraordinary Council, I stressed to my counterparts that we must immediately take collective action to support European consumers, who are being tested by the international energy crisis intensified by the horrific war in Ukraine. The suffocating pressures of vulnerable households and small and medium-sized enterprises from explosive increases in energy prices threaten social cohesion in Europe. Now, more than ever, we need to agree on a collective strategy with targeted measures to support society. At the same time, we must send a strong message of unity and solidarity to protect our energy security, our citizens and our economies. I called on my counterparts to adopt a realistic and carefully designed strategy for the gradual decoupling of Russian fossil fuels that does not jeopardize Europe’s security of gas supply. “Accelerating the green transition, implementing critical energy infrastructure that will enhance our energy competitiveness and working with neighboring countries to diversify energy sources and supply routes are the only way to overcome this unprecedented crisis.”
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