site.btaEC Asks EU Countries to Report by Thursday Evening Plans on Opening Oil Stockpiles

The European Commission has asked the EU Member States to report by Thursday evening their plans on whether or not they will release their oil stockpiles, a Commission spokesperson told a news conference Thursday.

The spokesperson said that EU workgroups on gas and oil supplies held meetings early in the day, and the conclusion after the two meetings is that there are no short-term threats to fuel supplies. The spokesperson said, though, that gas prices are a cause of concern.

The European gas storage facilities are 30% full and there is no reason to worry in this department. As for oil, each country decides for itself how to use its stockpiles. If necessary, the EC is ready to take measures, the spokesperson said.

He was adamant that Europe must not revisit its decision to end the import of Russian fossil fuel and argued that it would be cheaper for the EU in the long term to not import from Russia that remain dependent on its supplies.