Michel, who chairs EU leaders’ summits, said the bloc must address the issue of price caps, an idea supported by many EU member states. In thinly veiled criticism, he said the European Commission had taken too long to come up with proposals on the price crisis despite repeated calls for action from EU leaders. “There is not a day to lose,” said Michel, who urged the EU executive to put “concrete proposals on the table” as soon as possible and not wait until September 14, when European Commission President Ursula von der Layen, is expected to deliver his annual state of the union address. On Monday von der Leyen said the Commission was preparing plans to decouple energy prices from the rising cost of natural gas, in an effort to ensure electricity prices reflect cheaper energy from renewable sources. Her remarks caused a sharp drop in the wholesale price of natural gas. EU energy ministers will hold emergency talks on September 9, but are not expected to have any formal proposals to discuss. Michel, who has chaired several EU energy debates, made his displeasure with the timetable clear in an interview with European newspapers, including the Guardian. “We have to deal with the issue of price caps,” he said. “This is not new, we are not starting this discussion today. This is why we have called on the Commission many times in the past to put concrete proposals on the table to help Member States decide. “An ideological debate about the media is not enough. We need concrete and workable proposals on the table to deliver them.” Commission intelligence suggested the European Council leader was out of touch with recent developments and his comments reflected built-in tensions between the two presidents of sometimes rival EU institutions. Michel also said it was time to discuss decoupling natural gas from electricity prices. In the EU, electricity prices are determined by the price of the most expensive fuel, usually natural gas. This deal has created profits for renewable energy companies that can generate cheaper electricity from wind and solar power. A leaked document proposes a price cap for “sub-frontier power generation technologies” – renewables that cost less than natural gas – as part of a raft of measures to tackle all-time record gas and electricity prices . The windfall generated by this policy (the difference between the cap and the market rate) will be used to subsidize the poorest households. The document also calls for measures to reduce electricity demand. Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you to the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. The document, seen by the Guardian, carries a disclaimer that it is not a European Commission policy note, nor has it been endorsed by senior officials responsible for EU energy policy. The rise in energy prices was caused by a drastic reduction in natural gas supplies from Russia: in June 2022 they were less than 30% of the average between 2016 and 2021. Michel warned that EU institutions risked losing support without urgent action. “It’s really important not to forget that for our citizens, our families, our businesses, our SMEs – for them, the increase in the price of gas and electricity is a disaster.” Fears of a harsh winter ahead have raised concerns about a possible reduction in EU support for Ukraine as the brutal war against Russian encroachment continues while Kyiv goes bankrupt. Michel said he was confident the EU would soon agree on 9 billion euros in financial aid for Ukraine, which falls far short of Kiev’s estimated funding needs of 5 billion euros a month. So far the EU has released €1 billion of the €9 billion it promised, after internal wrangling over how costs should be shared between member states and the right balance between grants and loans. “This is urgent to implement,” Michel said, adding that he is confident “we will be able to implement what we have promised.”
