EU launches aggregate gas procurement platform AggregateEU
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On Tuesday at 10 a.m. Kyiv time, the European Union will launch a new tool for joint gas purchases, known as AggregateEU.
It is reported Bloomberg.
AggregateEU aims to create a pool of natural gas buyers and match them with sellers to avoid the price spikes that rocked energy markets last year.
On Tuesday, companies can begin submitting their gas demand forecasts for the 12 months starting in June. After the data is collected and analyzed and potential sellers submit their offers, both parties can see the best deals and close deals themselves or through special agents. It is expected to happen after May 17.
The EU is trying to reduce competition among gas buyers after Russian blackmail and supply cuts led to extreme price volatility, prompting some companies to seek state aid. Although the energy crisis has eased significantly since gas futures peaked in August, risks to supplies remain due to Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine.
It is not yet known whether key buyers such as Germany’s Uniper SE and France’s Engie SA will use the tool, and how large such purchases could be.
After the first tender, the EU plans to organize more joint purchases, obliging governments to combine demand for 15% of their gas reserves stored for the winter. This year, it is approximately 13 billion cubic meters, or about 3% of the total gas demand in the EU.
Once the tender is complete, the EU expects the first contracts with suppliers from the US to the Middle East and Africa to be signed around June. Ukraine also participates in AggregateEU procurement.
We remind you:
European Union countries Agreed on joint gas purchases on the way to taming high energy prices, and thus create leverage against the Russian Federation. The platform for joint gas purchases will also be open to the countries of the Eastern Partnership, in particular – Ukraine.
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