A cap on gas prices would help Malta in keeping the price of energy stable, as it would limit price hikes when purchasing from the interconnector, Energy Ministry Miriam Dalli said on Monday.
Times of Malta asked Dalli whether any financial aid for countries which are subsidising energy for their citizens could be expected in the European Commission’s proposals for an energy plan, which are expected to be announced on Tuesday.
On Friday, the European council of energy ministers met to discuss possible proposals that could be adopted by the European Commission in order to combat surging energy prices.
The invasion of Ukraine by Russian forces has sent the price of natural gas soaring and strained the European economy in the direct aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.
EU energy ministers emerged from Friday's meeting with agreement on some key measures they want the EU to adopt. Among them is some form of cap on gas prices.
That remit must now be translated into a set of tangible proposals by the EU's policymaking branch, the EU Commission. The commission is expected to present a plan this Tuesday.
Dalli said that while ministers are still waiting to hear the Commission’s proposals so that negotiations among all member states can begin, a proposed cap on gas prices would be beneficial to Malta when sourcing energy from the interconnector.
“To clarify, on Friday, energy ministers from the 27 member states gathered to discuss proposals that they felt would make sense and among those that gained support is that there should be a cap on the price of gas,” she said.
“Now, we are waiting for the European Commission to come up with its proposals and I believe that these will be different to those discussed in the council of ministers. After we have the Commission’s proposals so that we can enter negotiations and see how they can apply to all EU countries.”
“The proposal that gained the most support from individual member states is to cap the price of gas,” Dalli continued.
“Effectively this means that the price of gas will not rise beyond a certain level. This will help our country when it comes to the interconnector because when we purchase energy from Italy, any limitation of the price of gas in Europe will also impact the price in Italy.”
The undersea interconnector allows Malta to buy electricity on European markets as opposed to energy generated by the local Electrogas power station and a relatively minimal amount of electricity generated through solar power.
Malta is currently paying through the nose for interconnector power, with prices having risen by 500 per cent when compared to two years ago.
Another proposal that the EU Council asked the Commission to work on is a way of providing aid to consumers struggling under the burden of skyrocketing electricity bills. In Malta's case, taxpayers are carrying that burden, with the government spending hundreds of millions of euro to subsidise energy prices for households and businesses.
EU energy commissioner Kadri Simson said on Friday that citizens should expect the EU to table "unprecedented measures next week for an unprecedented situation".