EU proposes to jointly buy and share gas

The European Commission is proposing EU countries to collectively buy gas, as well as to oblige member countries to share gas with each other as part of a new set of emergency measures.

"This will ensure that any Member State facing an emergency will receive gas from others in exchange for fair compensation," the EC said.

In addition, by aggregating demand and buying gas together, member countries should be able to negotiate better prices on global markets.

The EC is also set to introduce a temporary price correction mechanism this winter to prevent excessive prices and price spikes on Europe's main gas exchange – the Title Transfer Facility (TTF) in the Netherlands.

It's believed this mechanism would establish a dynamic price limit for TTF gas transactions, as member states have not agreed on formal gas price caps. And by March 31, 2023, the EC will develop a new LNG pricing benchmark to ensure "stable and predictable pricing."