The countries of the European Union (EU) officially adopted on Friday the bloc's plan for emergency situations related to the reduction of gas consumption.
And that in order to save fuel for the winter due to uncertainty with Russian deliveries, despite the opposition of Poland and Hungary to the final version of the law, reports Reuters.
EU members last week reached an agreement to reduce gas demand, in an effort to fill gas storage for the winter and prepare for a possible complete suspension of supplies from Russia.
The agreement requires all EU countries to voluntarily reduce gas consumption by 15 percent, with the fact that this can become an obligation in extraordinary circumstances, although with numerous exemptions for individual countries and industries.
EU countries officially adopted the law on Friday, allowing last week's agreement to be implemented.
All countries except Hungary and Poland approved the law, according to a statement from the Czech Republic, which holds the current EU presidency.
Before the start of the military operation in Ukraine, Russia provided 40 percent of the EU's total gas needs.
Moscow has since cut gas flows to Europe, making it harder for countries in the 27-member bloc to fill storage ahead of winter, prompting a race to buy non-Russian fuel and to take measures to limit gas consumption.
Hungary, which is negotiating to buy additional gas from Russia, was the only country to oppose the deal last week, questioning the legitimacy of EU rules affecting the country's energy security. Poland also opposed the final law, although it supported the agreement last week.
Warsaw assessed that the legal basis for that law is "defective" and that decisions concerning the energy mix of member states should be made with the unanimous approval of all countries.
Their opposition, however, did not prevent the adoption of this plan, which needed the support of at least 15 countries to become law.
The European Commission is also "urgently evaluating" the possibility of introducing a gas price cap, the statement said, without specifying what form that cap would take.
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