EU leaders have agreed to the voluntary joint purchase of gas, liquefied natural gas (LNG) and hydrogen in an effort to push down prices for consumers in their respective countries.
"If we look at the gas market, the pipeline gas market, 75% of the global pipeline gas market is the European market. So we have an enormous purchasing power," European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said at the close of a two-day summit in Brussels.
"Therefore, I welcome that we will now use our collective bargaining power - instead of outbidding each other and driving prices up, we will pool our demand," she said.
Energy prices were already high across the continent at the start of the year. The situation has been exacerbated by the invasion of Ukraine and the sanctions subsequently imposed on Russia.
