The entry and trade of liquefied natural gas (LNG) into the European Union is hampered in some member states by the lack of competitive markets, says a study carried out by a consortium of consulting organisations (Trinomics, REKK and Equidity) commissioned by the European Commission and published on 29 May.
According to the document, “as there is no specific regulation in place that sets harmonised rules for LNG terminal operation across the EU [LNG operations in the EU are currently regulated by the EU Gas Directive 2009/73, not by a regulation], some shortcomings in its markets persist and hinder productive competition between LNG terminals and between LNG market operators.”
On the basis of the shortcomings identified, the authors of the report provide a series of recommendations aimed at making better use of the capacity of existing LNG terminals, improving their link with the gas market and facilitating the response to market demand.
These include the development of an EU-wide transparency platform on which all terminals should publish certain information in a standard and user-friendly format, such as services offered, applicable tariffs as well as contract conditions.
This platform should also provide all terminals with the price of a set of standardised products, making it easy to compare the prices of basic service offerings.
The study further recommends examining the possibility of requiring terminal users with a dominant overall market share to offer a minimum quantity of their imported LNG at regulated prices to suppliers or traders via the local wholesale gas market.
Reacting to the study, Poppy Kalesi, a member of the NGO Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), regretted that it does not include any reference to potential future baseline methane or CO2 emission levels governing entry and trade in wholesale gas markets in the EU.
To consult the study: https://bit.ly/3cHTDee (Original version in French by Damien Genicot)