EU to launch first round of joint gas purchases, aiming for stable supplies at lower prices

The first call for applications to purchase natural gas through EU joint purchases will take place next week. Companies from EU member states and Energy Community countries can submit requests via the AggregateEU platform. Joint purchases of natural gas will take place under an emergency regulation adopted last year. One of the main aims is to gain greater bargaining power by aggregating demand. 

The first call for joint purchases of natural gas for the EU and other European countries will open on 25 April, according to a press release published by the European Commission. Demand will be collected through a service called AggregateEU, operated by PRISMA. PRISMA, a European platform for trading capacity in gas infrastructure, won the tender to create the joint purchasing platform.

AggregateEU is open to all companies from EU member states and Energy Community contracting parties (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Georgia, Moldova, Montenegro, Serbia and Ukraine). All submitted requests will be aggregated and then matched with sellers’ offers in a tender. These tender rounds will last around two weeks and take place approximately every two months over the next 12 months.