The EU Commission wants to suspend reporting obligations. This is intended to secure the energy supply, which has been strained due to the Iran war. Many member states are calling for further easing.
Brussels, Berlin. The EU is temporarily weakening its climate protection regulations for the oil and gas industry. A spokeswoman for the EU Commission confirmed this to Handelsblatt. A solution is currently being worked on at a technical level. The aim is to postpone the introduction of reporting requirements through the Methane Ordinance, which would otherwise apply from 2027.
The EU wants to ensure the secure energy supply that is at risk because of the Iran war - and is responding to demands from Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) and French President Emmanuel Macron.
“We are encountering difficulties in implementation,” said EU Energy Commissioner Dan Jørgensen before the informal meeting of energy ministers in Dublin on Tuesday. He therefore instructed his services to examine options for a postponement “after listening to the opinions of many, many Member States”.
The gas industry had argued that the requirements could endanger security of supply. The EU Commission spokeswoman said the energy supply would remain stable for the time being.
The aim of the law from the EU Green Deal climate protection program is to reduce methane emissions. The gas is considered particularly harmful to the climate.
In July, the EU Commission had already recommended that member states not impose any penalties on companies that violate the methane regulation in the next three years. Penalties of up to 20 percent of annual sales are possible.
Now the Commission is taking a further step. However, it is questionable whether this is enough for the member states. There is currently discussion about postponing the regulation by one year.
When gas is extracted through fracking, large amounts of methane are sometimes released. Some manufacturers simply burn off gas instead of storing it. It often escapes through leaky pipelines. The EU therefore wants to encourage manufacturers abroad to avoid methane emissions wherever technically possible. For companies, this sometimes means high investments.
The EU regulations have been in force since 2024. From January 2027, for certain supply contracts, companies will have to prove that the producer in the country of origin monitors and documents its methane emissions at least as carefully as the EU requires of European companies. The introduction of these reporting requirements could now be postponed.
The regulation also stipulates that Member States must introduce rules for penalties for breaches of the regulation. According to the EU Commission, most states have not yet done this. The industry argues that there is still legal uncertainty.
Recently, the opponents of the methane regulation had gained support. Last week, Macron called on Commission President Ursula von der Leyen (CDU) to take action in view of the strained energy supply. Among other things, he suggested easing the methane regulations.
Previously, at an informal meeting of EU energy ministers, an initiative by the Czech Republic to completely suspend the regulation received enough votes for the necessary qualified majority. Federal Economics Minister Katherina Reiche (CDU) was also among the supporters. According to information from Handelsblatt, 20 member states spoke out in favor of easing restrictions at a meeting of economics ministers last week.
However, the dispute over the regulation extends through the federal government. While Reiche considers the regulation to be a threat to the security of supply of oil and gas, Federal Environment Minister Carsten Schneider (SPD) is against the suspension.
US President Donald Trump also increased pressure on the EU in the trade war. He is generally bothered by the EU's environmental regulations. In the trade war, the EU and the USA agreed to import more liquid gas from the USA in the future. Trump demands that there should be no conditions for this.
Criticism of the Commission's actions comes from the EU Parliament. “Suspending the methane regulation for a year will neither allow more gas to flow into Europe nor reduce heating bills,” said EU MP Jutta Paulus (Greens). “Instead, the fossil fuel industry’s far-right parliamentary puppets will try to suspend the regulation for much longer, if not abolish it completely.”
