The European Parliament today called for a three-year delay to monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) obligations for importers under the EU's 2024 methane emissions regulation (MER), after the European Commission earlier this month proposed a one-year postponement.
Parliament voted by a clear majority of 341 votes in favour, 225 against and six abstentions, signalling strong support for the three-year delay when negotiations on the final legal text start with EU member states.
If adopted into law, parliament's proposal would also give crude, natural gas and coal importers until 31 May 2031 to ensure their supply contracts meet EU-equivalent MRV standards.
EU producers and importers would also be required to report the methane intensity of their fossil fuels sold on the EU market by 5 August 2031, rather than by 5 August 2029 as earlier proposed by the commission.
Parliament does not want to extend the proposed delay to imports from countries under EU sanctions.
Parliament adopted its position under an urgency procedure. If no legal text is formally adopted before the end of 2026, MRV rules would automatically apply from 1 January 2027 for oil, gas and coal importers.
Earlier this month, EU energy commissioner Dan Jorgensen urged parliament and EU member states not to make "other" demands for changes to the regulation.
The three-year delay is an "absolute scandal", said German Green MEP Jutta Paulus, parliament's lead negotiator on the 2024 methane regulation. "It is utterly incomprehensible that, in the midst of an energy price crisis, gas should be needlessly flared or allowed to vent into the atmosphere," Paulus said.
Oil and gas producers' association IOGP Europe called on EU states to follow parliament's lead and ensure a level playing field for domestic producers. A "rigid" one-year delay, as proposed by the commission, would only bring the industry back to the same situation 12 months later, IOGP said.
