EU struggling to fix energy crisis

On Wednesday, the European Commission is expected to announce targets to cut electricity consumption and a revenue cap for non-gas fueled plants. Energy ministers will hold an emergency meeting on Sept. 30 to discuss them.

Germany will inaugurate lending to energy firms that are at risk of being crushed by soaring fuel prices, it said Tuesday, as Europe readied proposals to help households and industry cope with an energy crisis.

Separately, the EU’s securities watchdog is considering measures to help energy firms struggling to meet rocketing collateral demands. Firms were caught out by surging prices after Russia cut gas supplies to Europe to counter Western sanctions following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

The crisis is weighing heavily on Europe’s economy, even before winter when industrial users could face rationing if gas reserves prove inadequate. Industry sentiment in the bloc’s economic powerhouse, Germany, has tumbled.

“Of course we knew, and we know, that our solidarity with Ukraine will have consequences,” German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Tuesday. He urged Germans to get prepared for a tough winter as its energy supply shifts from Russian gas.