Brussels, 16/11/2009 (Agence Europe) - Meeting in Moscow as part of the EU-Russia Energy Dialogue, on Monday 16 November, Andris Piebalgs and Russian Energy Minister Sergei Shmatko signed a memorandum on an Early Warning Mechanism that includes a clear definition of the circumstances that would trigger the mechanism. This definition sets out clearly what constitutes a “significant disruption of supplies” whether due to maintenance of relevant infrastructure, accidents, or commercial disputes. The new mechanism covers oil, natural gas and electricity, and includes three basic steps: notification, consultation and implementation. In practice, the idea is that the EU or Russia will inform the other of any likely interruption, of oil, gas or electricity supply, including exchanging assessments of the situation. Thereafter, consultations will be held and, if necessary, there will be a joint assessment of the situation and a joint plan for a solution. Moreover, third parties will be allowed to take part in the arrangement. “An energy crisis like the one the EU suffered in January is harmful for supply, transit and consuming countries alike. We need to do everything necessary to make sure that such a situation never happens again. I'm confident that the implementation of this mechanism will be a powerful tool to prevent, in any event, the transit or export of energy to the European Union being reduced or cut off,” said Piebalgs in a press release. “The enhanced Early Warning Mechanism is clear evidence of the goodwill of both sides to work together in a trustworthy and mutually beneficial manner, building ways to prevent and solve problems, even before they happen,” added European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso who, at the EU-Russia summit in May of this year, agreed with Russian President Dimitri Medvedev to enhance the mechanism on the basis of proposal from the Commission. (E.H./transl./rt)