EU allows fuel rationing due to energy shock
Kyiv • UNN
The European Union is developing plans for a prolonged crisis and rising prices due to the war in the Middle East. Brussels is considering releasing oil reserves.
The EU is evaluating "all possibilities," including fuel rationing and the release of additional oil reserves from emergency stockpiles, as it prepares for a "long-term" energy shock caused by the war in the Middle East, EU Energy Commissioner Dan Jørgensen told the Financial Times, UNN reports.
Details
"This will be a long crisis... energy prices will be high for a very long time," said Dan Jørgensen, warning that for some "more critical" products, "we expect the situation to worsen further in the coming weeks."
The near-total closure of the vital Strait of Hormuz waterway and attacks on infrastructure in the Persian Gulf have created chaos in energy markets, leading to soaring prices and raising fears about long-term supplies.
"The rhetoric we are using and the words we are using are much more serious now than at the beginning of the crisis," Jørgensen said. "Certainly, according to our analysis, this situation will drag on, and countries need to make sure they have everything they need."
He said that while the EU "is not yet in a supply security crisis," Brussels is developing plans to address the "structural, long-term consequences" of the conflict.
The warning from the EU comes as an energy shock rolls across the globe, raising the specter of higher inflation and slower economic growth, forcing governments to develop plans to support consumers and prompting some countries to restart coal-fired power plants, the publication writes.
Jørgensen said the EU is "preparing for the worst-case scenarios," even if the bloc is "not yet at that stage" regarding the need to ration critical products such as jet fuel or diesel. "It's better to be prepared than to regret it later," Jørgensen said.
Asked about the possibility of easing jet fuel regulations to allow more imports from the US or increasing the ethanol content in automotive fuel, Jørgensen said: "We have not yet reached the point of correcting or changing any of our current rules."
But he added: "We are looking at all possibilities, and it is clear that the more serious the situation becomes, the more we will, of course, have to look for legislative tools."
The EU and the US have different standards for jet fuel: in the EU, the freezing point is -47°C, and in the US, it is -40°C.
Jørgensen also stated that he "does not rule out" another release of strategic energy reserves, "if the situation becomes more critical." Last month, EU countries participated in the largest-ever release of strategic oil reserves in an attempt to curb soaring prices.
IEA approved the largest oil reserve release in history11.03.26, 16:35 • 4081 view
Jørgensen declined to share the EU's "exact analysis" of when a new release might be needed, but stated: "We take this very seriously and are prepared to do it when and if it becomes necessary."
"We need to keep our options open, and if this is indeed, as I assume, a protracted crisis, then we will need these tools at a later stage as well," he added. "It needs to be done at the right time and proportionally."
Jørgensen also reaffirmed his position that there would be no changes to EU legislation aimed at stopping Russian LNG imports this year. He said that instead, it is acceptable to rely on the US and other partners for additional supplies, as they operate in a "free market."