Leaders of the 27 European Union countries meet on Thursday for the second time in a fortnight to try to bring down energy prices, though persistent divisions between them mean the bloc is unlikely for now to put a ceiling on what it pays for gas, according to Reuters.
The 27 are expected to back an alternative price benchmark for liquefied natural gas and joint gas buying, after earlier agreeing to cut consumption and introduce levies on windfall profits in the energy industry.
But they remain as split as they were months ago on whether and how to cap gas prices to stem high inflation and stave off recession, after Russia cut gas flows following its invasion of Ukraine.
While 15 countries including France and Poland push for some form of a cap, they face strong opposition from Germany and the Netherlands – respectively Europe’s biggest economy and gas buyer, and a major European gas trading hub.
“An agreement is extremely unlikely… Opinions seem to be really far apart,” a senior EU diplomat said ahead of Thursday’s talks.
They will also discuss emergency spending to mitigate the effects the acute energy crunch has on their economies and 450 million citizens.
While some countries have called for the bloc to issue new joint debt to finance that, more frugal members say hundreds of billions of euros unused from previous programmes should be spent first.
Another disagreement is whether to provide immediate relief through direct subsidies to households and businesses, or invest in green energy that would make the bloc more resilient in the future.
But given EU countries’ diverse energy mix and interests, the meeting risks falling short on concrete action, with other concerns being whether a gas cap would enable Britain to buy cheaper energy or compromise stability of supplies.
EU energy ministers meet again next week but another senior EU diplomat said they did not expect more detailed decisions before November.