EU overpaid $100 billion for fuel due to US-Iran war
Photo: EU countries to discuss how to prepare for winter (Getty Images)
The European Union has spent 100 billion euros more on fossil fuels since the start of the war between the US and Iran, despite maintaining the same volume of imports, states EU Energy Commissioner Dan Jørgensen.
As FT notes, EU countries will discuss how to prepare for winter amid higher energy prices.
In turn, Jørgensen called on the bloc's countries to propose measures to reduce demand, continue filling gas storage facilities to at least 80% capacity, and implement temporary measures to combat high prices.
He also mentioned that EU energy ministers discussed at a summit in Dublin the issue of releasing remaining strategic oil reserves, which were earmarked for March, to ease price pressure amid rising oil costs.
Jørgensen told journalists that that year, they had overpaid for energy by €100 billion without receiving a single additional molecule of gas or oil.
Against this backdrop, he also emphasized the need to accelerate the pace of electrification in Europe.
The EU commissioner added that they needed to get rid of that dependency and replace fossil fuels, which were imported, environmentally harmful, and expensive, with domestically produced energy.
Additionally, two Financial Times sources said Washington is pressuring European countries to draw on their strategic diesel reserves.
What else is important to know
In April, it became known that wholesale fuel prices in Europe, which Ukraine uses as a benchmark for its imports, had risen to record levels, at least since the early 1970s.
Furthermore, last week reports emerged that the Trump administration is considering a 90-day ban on diesel exports from the US. If enacted, this could lead to a surge in diesel prices across Europe.
Moreover, a few weeks ago, Reuters reported that the EU is facing challenges in phasing out Russian oil and gas. In particular, member states are underinvesting in supply diversification, renewable energy, and the development of power grids.
