Lithuanian official: EU could aggregate the demand for US gas in trade negotiations

As part of the negotiations with President Donald Trump, Lithuania's Energy Minister said on Tuesday that the European Union might consider aggregating their member countries' demands to buy U.S. Liquefied Natural Gas in an effort to avoid a trade conflict.

Maros SEFCIOVIC, EU Trade Commissioner, said that LNG could be included in negotiations when EU ministers met Monday to discuss the EU's response to Trump’s proposed 20% tariffs on EU goods.

Trump also said on Monday that the EU will need to purchase U.S. Energy and this could reduce the U.S. Trade Deficit with the EU.

The U.S. already is Europe's biggest LNG supplier. Last year, the U.S. supplied 45% of EU imports.

Zygimantas Vasiciunas stated that the EU had several options for incentivizing the purchase of U.S. LNG, including "demand aggregation". In this case, the European Commission would combine the LNG demand of groups of EU member countries or of the entire bloc in order to make a larger request for supplies.

Vaiciunas stated, "I believe that this would be a potential future discussion, about the need and the possible management of the demand in regions or the entire EU."

EU does not purchase gas directly. This is done by traders and companies in commercial contracts. Brussels, however, has been running a joint gas purchasing scheme since 2023, which aims to increase the bargaining strength of member states.

The EU scheme matches the gas demand of European companies with global gas suppliers' offers, while individual companies sign final contracts.

Since the invasion of Ukraine by Russia, U.S. LNG is more important to Europe.

A senior Ukrainian energy official said last month that Ukraine also plans to import large quantities of U.S. natural gas via terminals located in Germany, Poland, and Lithuania.

Vaiciunas stated that the EU may also amend its methane emission rules, which some U.S. firms claim they will find difficult to adhere to.

There are new regulations that have additional thresholds to allow U.S. LNG into the European market. Vaiciunas, in reference to the EU methane legislation, said that this was one of the possible changes.

He stated that the European Commission had not begun discussions with EU governments about how LNG could be a factor in trade negotiations with the U.S.

The EU will begin requiring importers of gas and oil to report methane emissions in the coming year. The fragmented U.S. gas industry has led some U.S. LNG suppliers to claim that they are unable to track emissions down their value chains and even the fields from which gas is extracted. (Reporting and editing by Barbara Lewis; Kate Abnett)

(source: Reuters)