Gas supply security in the EU

SUMMARY OF:

Regulation 2017/1938 aiming to safeguard an uninterrupted supply of gas throughout the EU

WHAT IS THE AIM OF THIS REGULATION?

It aims to strengthen European Union (EU) energy security by helping prevent potential supply disruptions and responding to them when they occur, to ensure that households and other vulnerable consumers are always supplied.
The regulation forms part of the energy union package, which aims to make energy secure, affordable and sustainable through closer cooperation between EU Member States.

KEY POINTS

Security of gas supply is the shared responsibility of natural gas companies, Member States and the European Commission. The main elements of the regulation are the following.

Better cooperation and coordination between regional groups of Member States to assess common supply risks and to develop and agree on joint preventive and emergency measures.
The introduction of the solidarity mechanism, through which Member States must help each other to always guarantee gas supply to the most vulnerable consumers – even in severe gas supply situations – under fair compensation conditions by the Member State receiving assistance.
The improvement of transparency by obliging gas companies to notify their national authority of their major long-term gas supply contracts that may be relevant for security of supply.
The European Network of Transmission System Operators will carry out a 4-yearly EU-wide simulation of gas supply and infrastructure disruption scenarios.
Member States have specific obligations to the Energy Community, with the Commission coordinating the legal rules.
In view of the escalation of the Russian military aggression against Ukraine and the need to secure the EU’s gas reserves, amending Regulation (EU) 2022/1032 requires underground gas storage on Member States’ territory to be filled to at least 80% of its capacity before the winter of 2022/2023 and to 90% before the winter periods in subsequent years. The aim is for the EU to collectively fill 85% of the total underground gas storage capacity in the EU in 2022.

The amending act also recognises the variations in gas storage capacities and national situations.

It allows Member States to partially meet the storage target by counting stocks of liquefied natural gas or alternative fuels.
For those Member States with very large storage capacities compared to their domestic gas consumption, the filling obligation for underground stocks will be limited to a volume corresponding to 35% of the average annual gas consumption over the last 5 years.
To strengthen their security of supply, Member States without storage facilities should store 15% of their annual domestic gas consumption in stocks located in other Member States and thus have access to gas reserves stored in other Member States. An exception is granted to Cyprus, Ireland and Malta for as long as they are not directly interconnected with the gas system of other Member States.

Repeal

The regulation repeals Regulation (EU) No 994/2010.

FROM WHEN DOES THIS REGULATION APPLY?

It has applied since 1 November 2017.

BACKGROUND

For further information, see:

Secure gas supplies (European Commission).

MAIN DOCUMENT

Regulation (EU) 2017/1938 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2017 concerning measures to safeguard the security of gas supply and repealing Regulation (EU) No 994/2010 (OJ L 280, 28.10.2017, pp. 1–56).

Successive amendments to Regulation (EU) 2017/1938 have been incorporated in the original text. This consolidated version is of documentary value only.

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