One option proposed in Monday’s letter is to relax state aid rules to permit national capitals to redistribute profits generated by gas-fired plants to support consumers and businesses facing rising bills, the letter says. Another potential change would allow countries to cap the price of gas.
Von der Leyen said both of these policies had been used after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and stressed that the Commission would determine on a case-by-case basis whether they would be deployed again.
“The design of these emergency mechanisms should in any case avoid internal market distortions, preserve long-term investment signals for clean energy and preclude excessive additional demand for gas,” she said.
The Commission will also “further strengthen” a mechanism that allows countries to compensate 80 percent of the carbon price paid under the Emissions Trading System, the EU’s flagship carbon pricing mechanism, von der Leyen added.
The letter also stresses that measures ought to be “targeted and temporary” — an apparent rebuke to countries that have sought to dismantle key climate policies that they blame for higher prices.
The Commission president added that the Commission would also look into simplifying rules for companies to buy electricity through power purchase agreements. It will also propose a new law to “ensure that grid users receive the right incentives to make optimal use of existing grid infrastructure, as this will avoid unnecessary and costly grid expansions,” she said.