MNI BRIEF: EU Leaders Point To Dec 19 Gas Cap Deal

EU leaders have given energy ministers a mandate to agree a gas price cap at their Monday meeting, in a bid to give needed political momentum to the difficult negotiations.

“There’s a mandate to find agreement on market correction mechanism on Monday next,” an EU official said, summing up the conclusions of energy talks among leaders today.

If concluded Monday, an agreement on the Market Correction Mechanism would also unlock a deal on joint EU purchasing of gas and faster permits for renewable energy projects.

Ministers at their meeting on Tuesday were said to be looking at a cap of around €220 kw/h, although some countries were seeking a lower level as well as easier conditions for its triggering. Others, like Netherlands and Germany, which are sceptical a cap will be effective, are seeking an automatic deactivation clause if the cap has unintended or perverse consequences. The EU official said it had never been the intention of leaders to get into “the technical details”.