|
Brussels, |
|
EU extends gas-storage rules to 2027, adding new flexibilities
EU Parliament and Council decide to extends 90 % gas-storage rule to 2027 while granting countries new leeway to navigate volatile markets.
EU extends gas-storage rules to 2027, adding new flexibilities
The European Parliament has ratified a compromise with the Council that prolongs the EU’s emergency gas-storage regime until the end of 2027 while softening its most rigid elements. Whereas the Commission had merely proposed shifting the sunset date of the existing 90 % filling obligation, lawmakers added a wider “landing zone” for the target (any time between 1 October and 1 December) and a tiered system of derogations that can lower the benchmark by up to 10 percentage points—plus a further 5 points for large producers or slow-injecting sites, and another 5 points via delegated act in a crisis. Trajectories remain but become indicative, reporting now includes the share of Russian gas in storage, and countries without facilities still have to book 15 % of their demand abroad. The deal, expected to enter into force ahead of the 2025–26 heating season, offers member states cost-saving flexibility while preserving a headline target seen as vital for winter security of supply; a full review will decide by 2027 whether permanent rules should replace this stop-gap arrangement.
Strasbourg, 8 July 2025 – The European Parliament has voted to confirm the deal it struck with the Council on a new Regulation that keeps Europe’s emergency gas-storage discipline in place until the end of 2027, while giving governments a wider margin to cope with volatile prices and supply risks. Read the adopted text.
For traders, system operators and national energy ministries, the headline remains clear: the 90 % November target lives on, but with just enough room to breathe when markets get ugly. The compromise keeps the EU’s crisis muscle-memory intact while acknowledging that the next two winters may require tactical agility rather than rigid rules.
For traders, system operators and national energy ministries, the headline remains clear: the 90 % November target lives on, but with just enough room to breathe when markets get ugly. The compromise keeps the EU’s crisis muscle-memory intact while acknowledging that the next two winters may require tactical agility rather than rigid rules.
