BRUSSELS — A little-known set of EU rules designed to fight climate change is creating a looming hurdle between Europe and any effort to buy more U.S. gas, industry experts and politicians are warning.
President Donald Trump has said that if the EU doesn’t want to face crippling tariffs on trade, “the one thing they can do quickly is buy our oil and gas.” But while EU officials have confirmed they are open to negotiating with the White House, experts are pointing out that upcoming emissions rules may get in the way.
In 2027, EU countries will start penalizing companies when they import fuel that doesn’t comply with new methane emissions rules. Those measures were developed in partnership with the Biden administration. But Trump appears keen to reverse the requirements on his end. If U.S. firms use that as an opening to scale back methane efforts, that could create extra fees when their gas is sold into the EU market.
The situation creates “potential tension,” said Matteo Mazzoni, director of Energy Analytics at commodities intelligence firm ICIS — especially for someone like Trump, who sees things through a tariff lens.
