Natural Gas Daily

• Sceptics shatter European shale gas hopes
  16 May 2013 12:39 GMT
  
  
  Shale gas in the US may not be as economic as once thought, meaning its potential in Europe could be limited.
• Lithuanian presidency to favour Estonian LNG project
  16 May 2013 12:24 GMT
  
  
  Lithuania will favour a new LNG terminal on the Estonian coast for EU priority status and possible funding when it takes over the presidency of the EU in July,Interfax has learned.
• Parliament’s position on backloading unlikely to change
  9 May 2013 14:14 GMT
  
  
  The European Parliament’s position on backloading under the EU ETS is unlikely to change despite pressure from member states, analysts have told Interfax.
• ‘Energy is the blood of the EU economy’ – BP
  9 May 2013 12:10 GMT
  
  
  Interfax talks to Emmanuel Haton, BP’s director of European government affairs, about the regulatory challenges facing the EU gas industry. .
• Gazprom investigation remains work in progress
  9 May 2013 10:45 GMT
  
  
  The European Commission’s investigation into Gazprom’s alleged abuse of its dominant position in EU markets is ongoing.
• German coal plants ‘unlikely’ to be economical
  2 May 2013 15:03 GMT
  
  
  Low coal and carbon costs under the EU ETS have outweighed the impact of weak power prices and made coal a profitable fuel source in Germany. However, some say coal power generation in Germany may not be economical in the long run.
• EU energy investment ‘in crisis’ says House of Lords
  2 May 2013 14:51 GMT
  
  
  Investment in the EU energy industry is in crisis because of member states’ sovereign debt problems and a lack of a policy framework beyond 2020, a study released this week by the UK House of Lords’ European Union Committee has concluded. .
• MEPS voice support for indigenous output of shale gas
  25 Apr 2013 13:43 GMT
  

  MEPS have shown their support for the indigenous output of shale gas to compensate for dwindling production of conventional gas in the EU.

• MEPs call for abolition of oil-indexed gas contracts
  25 Apr 2013 13:38 GMT
  
  
  Several MEPs have called for a phasing out of oil indexation in long-term gas supply, on the grounds that high energy costs are harming the competitiveness of EU industries.
• German energy policy: hard times for gas
  25 Apr 2013 12:39 GMT
  
  
  Current environmental policies are pushing gas out of Germany’s energysystem to the benefit of coal, industry experts said at a meeting in Berlin this month.
• EC investigates German network charge exemptions
  25 Apr 2013 12:22 GMT
  

  The European Commission recently opened an investigation into whether an exemption from network charges for large electricity consumers in Germany, granted in 2011, constitutes state aid.

• Is this the end of emissions trading?
  18 Apr 2013 14:04 GMT
  
  
  Carbon prices reached an all-time low this week after the European Parliament rejected the European Commission’s proposal to delay the auctioning of allowances under the third phase of the EU’s Emissions Trading System (ETS).
• Industry demands clearer framework for LNG as shipping fuel
  18 Apr 2013 13:38 GMT
  
  
  The European Barge Union has called on the European Commission to shape the right political framework and reserve a minimum of 20% of the Trans-European transport budget budget to enable inland waterway transport to move towards a sustainable system.
• Towards a Mediterranean energy community?
  18 Apr 2013 11:49 GMT
  
  
  While the potential for deeper energy relations exists between Europe and other Mediterranean countries, the main obstacle to further cross-border interconnectors is the lack of an adequate stable regulation framework, experts have told Interfax.
• EC considers environmental legislation for shale gas
  18 Apr 2013 10:57 GMT
  
  
  The European Commission may propose EU-wide legislation covering environmental standards for shale gas extraction by the end of this year, a senior commission representative has said.