The European Union will ask its member countries to waive penalties for three years for oil and gas companies that breach its methane emissions law, in response…
The European Union will ask its member countries to waive penalties for three years for oil and gas companies that breach its methane emissions law, in response to the Iran war's disruption to energy supplies, a draft document seen by Reuters showed.
The move follows pressure from the U.S. government and oil and gas industry groups, who have warned the law could hamper Europe's ability to secure fuel supplies.
It would weaken the world-first EU climate policy, which was designed to clamp down on leaks of methane, a potent greenhouse gas and the second-biggest cause of climate change after CO2 emissions.
The draft European Commission document, seen by Reuters, said EU countries should not apply penalties to companies that breach the methane law in 2027, 2028 and 2029, except for "large-scale fraudulent breaches".
The change would apply to existing oil and gas supply contracts and those signed or renewed before January 2028, it said.
"In the current Middle East crisis context, in order to not endanger the security of energy supply... and to tackle the exposure of European consumers and businesses to potential energy supply shortages causing high prices, member states should not apply the penalties," it said.
The draft document
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