The key facts

  • The gas price on the Dutch TTF hub rose from ~€28 in January to almost €104 per MWh by the end of October
  • According to the regulator ACER's estimate, the Middle East crisis added €18–33 billion to the EU's gas import costs
  • EU governments are spending €17.9 billion on short-term support this year

EU ministers look for ways to lower energy bills

At the EU Energy Council in Luxembourg on 29 October, ministers discussed strengthening energy security, affordability and the bloc's resilience in order to limit the impact of the war in the Middle East on European energy bills. This is reported by Euronews. The context matters: Europe covers 57% of its energy needs with imported fossil fuels, which makes the bloc vulnerable to global price shocks when gas supply conditions change.

How much prices have risen

Wholesale gas prices on the Dutch TTF hub rose from about €28 per MWh in January to almost €104 by the end of October. According to an estimate by the European energy regulator ACER, the Middle East crisis added €18–33 billion to the bloc's gas import costs at the same volume, while overall inflation reached 3.8% in September.

What the ministers agreed on

The ministers agreed to work on lowering electricity prices and taxes for the winter period, including seeking to ensure that excise duties on electricity do not exceed those on natural gas. They also supported making maximum use of existing networks, strengthening interconnections between member states, increasing investment in domestic clean energy and diversifying supplies. The EU's adopted approach should be based on coordination and solidarity between states.

Link to previous measures

These measures continue the EU's efforts to strengthen energy resilience since the start of Russia's war in Ukraine and build on the AccelerateEU plan proposed in April to expand clean energy, diversify supplies and speed up the energy transition. They also complement national measures: EU governments are spending €17.9 billion this year on short-term support for households — energy vouchers, price caps and excise duty reductions. Separately, Euronews has launched an AI chatbot where you can learn more about the EU's plan to lower energy bills.