How did the EU respond to the 2022 energy crisis?
Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine caused an unprecedented energy crisis in Europe in 2022. EU countries stood united and their response helped keep prices down.
How the EU responded to the energy crisis
Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine and use of energy as a political weapon had a devastating impact on energy markets. The energy crisis peaked in August 2022, when energy prices reached record highs. Exceptionally high energy bills hit hard on people and businesses across the EU.
EU countries were united and swift in their response. Just weeks after Russia invaded Ukraine, the leaders of the 27 EU member states decided that the EU would transition away from dependence on Russian fossil fuels as soon as possible by:
- diversifying supplies and suppliers
- reducing the use of fossil fuels and speeding up the shift towards cleaner energy
The European Commission soon launched the REPowerEU plan – a blueprint for increasing the EU's energy autonomy and boosting clean energy.
In the months that followed, EU countries worked tirelessly within the Council to adopt legislation to realise the REPowerEU goals.
For most of the decisions, the Council acted alone as EU legislator, as permitted under Article 122 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU in emergency situations.
EU countries adopted within the Council six sets of legislative measures in less than a year. Rules were adopted in record time – on average it took just a few months to get from the proposal stage to entry into force, compared to the two years it generally takes for EU legislation to be enacted.
Cooperation and solidarity
Working together proved to be the best way for EU countries to mitigate the impact of the crisis and reduce common and individual risks linked to energy supply.
The energy ministers of the 27 EU member states held 10 Council meetings, including a number held at short notice, between the start of the Russian full-scale invasion and the end of 2022. These were key to agreeing on common rules to better protect citizens and businesses from the rising energy costs.
Solidarity among EU countries was crucial in ensuring gas supply, in particular to those countries which were more dependent on Russian energy and therefore more affected by supply cuts.
The results of joint action
Joint efforts paid off. After months of skyrocketing prices, the price of gas in the EU decreased substantially towards the end of 2022 and remained relatively stable in 2023. In December 2023, one megawatt/hour (MWh) of gas cost €34 – almost nine times less than it did at the peak of the crisis, when the price reached over €300/MWh.
Security of supply
Gas storage facilities were filled to over 99% of capacity in October 2023 and were at over 90% of their capacity in October 2024. This ensured abundant reserves before each cold season.
Cut in energy demand
EU countries worked together to reduce energy demand. Gas consumption fell by 18% between August 2022 and May 2024, compared to the previous five years.
Reduced dependency on Russia
The EU quickly diversified energy imports away from Russia. Imports of Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) and piped natural gas have fallen from 45% in the pre-crisis years to 13% in 2025, and will be fully banned from the end of 2026 and autumn 2027 respectively.
Boost to renewables
2023 was a new record year for solar energy, with 56 gigawatts of new photovoltaic capacity installed, which is 60% more than in 2021 (26 GW). In May 2022, for the first time ever, more electricity was generated in the EU from wind and solar power than from fossil fuels.
Emergency measures in practice
1. Diversifying energy supply
More than half of all of the energy available in the EU is imported. While in 2020 Russia was still the EU's main supplier of fossil fuels, that shifted rapidly after Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022. In March 2022 EU leaders agreed to progressively phase out EU dependence on Russian gas, oil and coal imports. As a result, the EU's main fossil fuel suppliers are now countries such as the United States, Norway, Algeria and Australia.
Diversifying supplies and suppliers is a necessary step to strengthen the EU's energy resilience and autonomy, especially in the event of energy shortages.
EU actions:
- phasing out Russian energy imports
- increasing import volumes from partner countries, in particular the US and Norway
- stepping up imports of LNG
In January 2026, the Council adopted a regulation fully ending imports of Russian LNG and pipeline gas as of the end of 2026 and autumn 2027 respectively.
Where does the EU's gas come from? (infographic)
2. Filling up reserves
As gas deliveries became less predictable during the energy crisis, including due to Russia ceasing delivery to a number of EU countries, the Council took urgent measures to:
- secure supplies of gas for the cold season
- reduce gas demand in the EU
In June 2022, the Council adopted a regulation to ensure that gas storage facilities would be filled each year to at least 90% capacity before the cold season. This ensured EU countries had sufficient reserves to heat homes and run businesses.
In July 2025, the Council adopted a two-year extension of the rules and introduced additional flexibility, enabling member states to adjust to ever-evolving market conditions and to combat potential market manipulation.
Gas reserves in the EU in recent years
The line chart compares the gas storage filling level over the course of the year for the years 2021-2025. In 2022, 2023 and 2024, the average storage level was much higher than in 2021. In 2022, the goal of 80% full was reached in August. In 2023, gas storage facilities were filled to over 80% of capacity from July and to over 90% from August. In 2024, the 90% threshold had already been reached by August. In 2025, the reserve levels were lower, due in part to a relatively harsh winter in Europe, but they mostly stayed above 2021 averages.
The data comes from Gas Infrastructure Europe.
- How much gas have the EU countries stored? (infographic)
- Gas storage: Council greenlights 2-year extension of reserves filling rules to safeguard winter supply (press release, 18 July 2025)
- Council adopts regulation on gas storage (press release, 27 June 2022)
Measures were taken to reduce gas demand. These were voluntary, but could have been made compulsory if necessary. In March 2024, measures were extended, as a recommendation and only on a voluntary basis.
3. Cutting energy bills
EU countries adopted an emergency regulation to help the citizens and businesses most affected by the energy crisis.
The regulation included three emergency measures:
- reducing electricity use
- capping electricity producers' revenues
- securing a solidarity contribution from fossil fuel businesses
The new rules allowed member states to collect funds from the surplus profits of energy companies and redistribute these to the most vulnerable people and businesses in the EU, providing direct support to those struggling to pay their energy bills.
In addition, the EU worked on reforming the design of the electricity market. The reform aims to avoid steep increases in electricity prices with a focus on:
- better protection for consumers
- more stability for companies
- increasing the share of green electricity
In the current market model, the price of electricity is determined by the highest-cost energy source (during the energy crisis, this was gas). The goal of the reform is to make electricity prices less dependent on the price of fossil fuels and in this way reduce the electricity bills paid by consumers.
The Council and the European Parliament reached a provisional deal on the reform in December 2023. The Council adopted the reform in spring 2024.
Electricity market reform
4. Enhancing solidarity
Measures were also put in place to enhance cooperation and solidarity among member states and make it possible for member states and energy companies to purchase gas jointly on global markets.
Pooling demand at EU level gave EU countries better leverage when it comes to buying gas on global markets and avoided member states outbidding each other.
The new rules also expanded the solidarity arrangements between EU countries. Countries that do not yet have an agreement with another EU member state were able to request solidarity if needed.
5. Preventing price spikes
EU countries adopted a market mechanism to limit episodes of extraordinarily high gas prices in the EU and thus reduce the impact of price hikes on citizens and the economy.
How did it work? A price ceiling for gas transactions could be applied if gas prices reached exceptional levels.
- A market mechanism to limit excessive gas price spikes (infographic)
- Council agrees on temporary mechanism to limit excessive gas prices (press release, 19 December 2022)
The reform of the electricity market also aims to avoid price shocks.
6. Moving faster towards cleaner energy
The EU's long-term plan is to decarbonise the energy sector, in line with its climate goals. The energy crisis prompted leaders to fast-forward action towards this objective.
EU countries agreed to make the EU's plans more ambitious and to accelerate action:
- new target for renewable energy: by 2030 at least 42.5% of the EU's energy will come from renewables (the initial proposed target was 40%)
- new target for energy efficiency: the EU will reduce energy use by 11.7% by 2030, compared to consumption forecasts for 2030 made in 2020
- measures to fast-track the deployment of renewable energies and speed up permitting procedures for renewable energy projects
- EU gas market reform, to progressively replace fossil gas with renewable and low-carbon gases, including hydrogen
Shifting to cleaner energy also helps to reinforce the EU's energy autonomy, as green energy can be produced in the EU and reduces reliance on imports.
How the EU is greening energy
What caused the energy crisis?
Energy prices in the EU started to rise substantially in 2021, as a result of the economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused an increase in demand for liquefied natural gas and greater consumption of gas in Asia.
Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 had a devastating impact on the energy market and pushed energy prices to record levels.
Russia's unilateral decision to cut off the gas supply to a number of EU countries caused uncertainty, leading to skyrocketing gas prices. This also impacted the cost of electricity, the price of which in the EU is linked to the price of fossil fuels.
See also
Connecting energy infrastructure in the EU
Ending Russian energy imports
How much gas have the EU countries stored?
Last review: 12 February 2026