EU revives offer for US gas after tariff pause

The European Union will revive an offer to buy more American gas, believing that US President Donald Trump is more open to negotiation after pausing the tariffs that have shaken the economy.

The EU plans to reopen talks to increase liquefied natural gas (LNG) purchases from the US and offer specific proposals to address Trump’s anger over transatlantic trade, according to three European officials familiar with the discussions who spoke to POLITICO.

Specifically, the officials said that the EU is looking for ways to aggregate demand to allow the continent to place larger, Europe-wide orders—but ideally at more competitive prices—to meet the White House’s demands.

The EU has been trying to make contact with the Trump administration on this issue for months, but diplomats claim they have encountered confusion and disinterest in Washington.

But allegedly, the situation has now changed: markets are collapsing, and business leaders are begging Trump to change tactics.

“These proposals have been on the table for some time, but we hope there is now an opportunity to make progress,” one of the officials said.

Since his election last November, Trump has repeatedly insisted that the EU buy more American oil and gas to avoid a trade war.

The President has also said that the EU needs to spend an additional $350 billion on American energy to offset what he sees as a “persistent trade deficit.”

Late Wednesday, Trump announced a 90-day pause on most global tariffs, insisting that America’s partners now negotiate to eliminate trade barriers.

The EU sees this as another opportunity to promote its LNG offer. Officials have openly expressed their desire to consume more American fuel, viewing it as a way to finally break all energy ties with Russia.

“In the future, we will buy more gas from the US,” said EU Energy Commissioner Dan Jørgensen at an industry event on Tuesday, stressing that these purchases must be in line with the bloc’s “green transformation” goals.

On the other hand, it is unclear how well a demand aggregation plan will work because, ultimately, companies, not governments, will make these purchases. The EU launched a similar system after the war in Ukraine, hoping to lower very high prices, but ultimately, very few companies participated.

Still, pooling orders from private suppliers and matching them with American suppliers is one way for the bloc to obtain larger volumes of US LNG.

Concerns about LNG prices are also casting a shadow over the talks.

The EU requires countries to fill their fuel storage tanks to 90% of capacity by November 1 each year, and capitals are concerned that the cost of rushing to buy supplies, most of which are American, during the summer will increase costs.

EU countries are trying to relax these rules, hoping that this flexibility will allow them to spend less on LNG.

On Thursday, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen warned that the EU would respond in kind if tariffs were reimposed, but for now, “We want to give negotiations a chance.”