Poland and Hungary have declined to back the EU’s proposal to reduce gas usage by 15%, according to a document provided by the Czech Republic, which is presently leading discussions inside the union, as reported by Reuters on Saturday.
Last week, EU nations came to an agreement on a plan to cut back on gas use in order to fill storage tanks amid worries that Russian supply may be cut off. On Friday, the EU Council gave the measure its OK. However, Reuters reports that in order for the vote to pass, it just needed a simple majority, or the support of 15 of the bloc’s 28 members.
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Hungary opposed the plan from the start and is presently negotiating to acquire additional Russian gas supply. Budapest questioned the legitimacy of the proposal, alleging that it would harm the nation’s energy security, according to the document obtained by Reuters.
Poland first agreed to reduce consumption but later voted against the proposal, according to the news agency. Warsaw deemed the document’s legal foundation “defective” and declared that decisions impacting the EU nations’ energy mix should only be taken with the support of all member states.
The recently approved rationing scheme is optional unless the EU Council issues a “Union alert” on the security of the gas supply. There are also a number of exclusions included. Particularly excluded from the obligation are member states that are not linked to the gas networks of other EU nations. Members may also ask for a modification of the rules if they have surpassed their storage capacity goals or if gas is crucial to their strategically essential industry.
