The Gas Exporting Countries Forum on Tuesday warned against “politically motivated” price caps, saying that attempts to change the gas pricing mechanism are a source of concern.

The Group of Seven countries agreed last month to cap Russian oil sales at an enforced low price by Dec. 5 in an effort to curb Moscow’s wartime revenue after it invasion of Ukraine, and earlier on Tuesday EU energy ministers expressed support for the idea of a dynamic price cap for gas to limit price spikes.

“Such interventions in market performance can exacerbate market bottlenecks, discourage investment and harm producers and consumers,” the gas forum said at the end of a ministerial meeting in Cairo.

Among the members of the forum are major natural gas exporters Russia, Qatar and Algeria.

The forum emphasised in its statement the importance of dialogue between consumers and producers for the security of supply and demand, adding that reduced investment since 2015 has led to market imbalance.

It expects market bottlenecks to continue over the medium term as most new projects will not start production until after 2025.
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Ahmad Elhamy Editing by David Goodman)