The impact of the war in Ukraine on energy prices and, as a rebound, inflation in the euro zone as a whole has caused a radical change in the European Union's vision of the operation of its electricity market, which currently bases electricity rates in the price of gas. "The situation has changed completely since it was designed," acknowledged the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, reluctant until a few months ago to the idea of reviewing the functioning of the market, raised last fall by Spain and others peripheral countries.
With euro zone inflation at record highs and a dozen countries already experiencing total or partial cuts in Russian gas supplies, the situation has completely changed. The European Commission will prepare various pricing models with the aim of taking into account that today there is a large amount of renewable energy entering the system and the role of gas is increasingly residual.
Despite the urgency to take measures expressed by several European leaders, Mario Draghi's idea of meeting in July to talk about the economy being rejected, the matter will not be debated by the European Council until October. “We will present the proposals after the summer”, said Von der Leyen.
The European Council today reaffirmed its full support for Ukraine in the face of Russian war aggression but, with inflation at record highs, four months since the start of the war and six rounds of sanctions later, they have not hidden their concern about the economic consequences of the crisis.
Although the EU insists that Russia is responsible for all these problems, and not the sanctions imposed by the West, the European governments are the ones that have to deal with the immediate consequences and have also commissioned Brussels with a shock plan, on several fronts. , to prepare for a difficult autumn and winter, given the prospect of possible cuts in Russian gas supplies.
“Apart from giving temporary support to citizens and companies, it is essential to help our society adapt to the new conditions”, defended the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, who in July will present a common plan to reduce energy demand for the private sector and households at the same time. "We are not going to return to the era of cheap fossil fuels," stressed the head of the community executive, who has already presented a plan to diversify the EU's oil and gas suppliers, increase energy efficiency and boost the market for renewable ones. There are encouraging signs, says Von der Leyen, such as the increase in supply from the United States, Norway and Azerbaijan or the agreements signed with Israel and Egypt.
The global economic and financial context is delicate, French President Emmanuel Macron has pointed out. “We are facing, at the same time, an accelerated return of inflation, the normalization of monetary policy and the first signs of an economic slowdown”, he summarized at the final press conference of the summit, which marks the end of the semester of French presidency of the Council of the EU.
The president of the European Central Bank, Christine Lagarde, met today with the leaders of the euro zone countries and assured them that she will adopt measures to contain inflation and that price growth will return to the 2% target by medium term, in line with its mandate. Croatia's entry into the monetary union on January 1, 2023, made official today, "is a sign of the strength and resilience" of the common currency, Michel assured.
