30/03/2022 (Agence Europe) – Faced with the risk of a reduction in or an end to Russian fossil fuel supplies to European countries, the energy ministers of the member countries of the ‘Pentalateral Energy Forum’ (Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, France, Germany, Austria and Switzerland) signed a political declaration on Wednesday 30 March aimed at strengthening their coordination on fossil gas storage. In particular, the declaration stresses the importance of using cross-border storage facilities, including in and from European third countries, in order to comply with the European Commission’s recent proposals on storage (see EUROPE 12917/7) as well as to share the costs fairly between countries. “In the current tense geopolitical situation, gas storage is a very important asset to promote not only the smooth functioning of the European gas market, but also the security of the gas supply”, said Claude Turmes, Luxembourg’s energy minister and current President of the Forum. (DG)