EU parliament committee backs softer gas storage rules

By Kate Abnett

BRUSSELS (Reuters) -A European Parliament committee voted on Thursday in favour of plans that would lower targets on filling gas storage, agreeing with concerns from member states the goals have driven prices higher.

The EU's gas storage rules were introduced in 2022, after the supply disruption caused by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, to ensure countries had a buffer of stored fuel during winter.

But governments earlier this month backed plans to soften the rules, following concerns the commitment to fill storage to 90% capacity by November 1 inflated prices as it effectively told the market European buyers needed to buy large amounts of gas ahead of this deadline.

Lawmakers in the European Parliament's energy committee on Thursday supported an 83% filling goal that countries can meet at any time between October 1 and December 1.

Countries should also be allowed to deviate from the 83% goal by four percentage points, in the event of unfavourable market conditions, such as high gas prices, the lawmakers said.

The lawmakers, however, said the combination of all proposed flexibilities for the rules should not pull down the storage filling requirement to below 75% of capacity before winter.

The full EU Parliament will vote next month on its negotiating position - and could make changes to the proposal the committee adopted on Thursday. EU lawmakers and member countries will then negotiate the final storage rules.

The changes will apply to EU storage-filling targets for 2026 and 2027. They could also amend this year's November target if countries and lawmakers approve them before that date.

Benchmark EU gas prices have fallen since February, retreating to a near-nine-month low earlier this month, in reaction to concerns of the economic fallout from U.S. President Donald Trump's trade war, as well as the push to ease Europe's storage-filling obligations.

(Reporting by Kate Abnett; editing by Barbara Lewis)