“Warsaw’s Super Hard Line”
EU ambassadors negotiated from morning until late at night, but could not agree on the maximum price of Russian oil. author Policy. Diplomats continued negotiations on Thursday.
“Senior EU officials and diplomats have said the European Commission has proposed a ceiling price in the range of $65 to $70 per barrel – close to the range envisioned by the G7. Most countries accepted this price, except Poland, which wanted a much lower price of $30 per barrel.”
Two sources of the publication said they were disappointed by “Warsaw’s extremely strict line” and “the attempt to tie oil price ceilings to the ninth package of sanctions against Russia”. In their view, such a position “risks delaying both restraint and the next round of enforcement.”
The authors of the material also noted that Hungary is in “isolation”. Budapest representatives said that they are against the Russian Federation to impose a ceiling on oil prices. The article says that his colleagues considered it a “poster” and that respect for Hungary was “fallen” in Brussels.
Another EU diplomat told the publication that “differences make agreement difficult”.
On November 22, The New York Times reported, citing sources, that the idea behind removing the cap on the cost of oil from the Russian Federation was to “limit the revenue that Russia can generate from oil exports while at the same time avoid fuel shortages.” an increase in prices.
If this measure is taken, the countries participating in the agreement intend to set a price “high enough” to exceed the cost of oil production, but “low enough to significantly affect their profits” to “encourage the Russians to continue selling.” receive.”
“Homeopathy” initiative
According to the article, the EU could not agree on the maximum cost of gas. EU energy ministers have criticized the European Commission’s proposal for Russian gas prices, calling it a “homeopathic” measure.
“Officially, the purpose of today’s meeting of the Council is not to take a decision to limit gas supply. But diplomats told Politico that some countries are threatening to form a blocking alliance and delay the approval of the European Commission’s energy package if the measure is not affected.
The authors of the material noted that 16 EU ministers are in favor of a gas price ceiling, which “could constitute a qualified majority”. But all 16 of these ministers criticized the European Commission proposal, which, in their view, was “designed to never work”.
“The Commission will hear very harsh things from the vast majority of ministers. We asked the commission to make a proposal, and he put it forward – not a proposal, but a joke,” the publication quotes the words of Spanish Energy Minister Teresa Ribera.
Kadri Simson, Commissioner for Energy of the European Commission, recommended that the maximum price of the monthly gas futures contract for the TTF hub index (Title Transfer Facility – Europe’s largest gas hub located in the Netherlands) be set at EUR 275 per MWh. According to his plan, it will be impossible to trade above the marginal price.
Simson added that the market correction mechanism will be triggered automatically under two conditions. The first, according to him, is that the price of gasoline must exceed 275 euros for two weeks. The second is that the difference between TTF and liquefied natural gas prices during ten trading days exceeds €58.
The European Commission has announced that the new mechanism to limit increases in gas prices can be activated from 1 January 2023.
Source: Gazeta
Ben Stock is a business analyst and writer for “Social Bites”. He offers insightful articles on the latest business news and developments, providing readers with a comprehensive understanding of the business world.