The European Commission has unveiled changes to the way the EU categorizes its gas supply risk groups, aiming to keep pace with shifting energy realities. This update notably reshuffles regional risk group compositions, incorporates new LNG infrastructure, and merges the UK’s group into the North Sea cluster. These moves directly impact national authorities, gas producers, EU consumers, and infrastructure operators, inevitably stirring reactions over the altered gas security planning landscape.
The amendments come from a Delegated Regulation published on January 22, 2026, by the Directorate-General for Energy (ENER). This instrument updates Annex I of Regulation (EU) 2017/1938 on gas supply security, reflecting shifts triggered by geopolitical upheavals, including the sharp decline in Russian gas imports.
Officially classified as a delegated regulation, this document carries mandatory provisions. It concretely modifies regional risk groups based on the latest ENTSOG simulations and risk assessments, marking a substantial redesign of gas supply coordination. Key features include reducing the number of risk groups, integrating LNG terminals as critical energy infrastructure, merging the UK group post-Brexit, and adding Czechia to the South-East risk group—all aimed at adapting emergency planning to current supply patterns.
The policy direction reflects a prioritization of EU-wide energy independence, especially by reducing reliance on Russian pipeline gas. This involves a trade-off favoring regulatory simplification and reliance on LNG imports (which surged by 73% in 2022) at the expense of previous regional arrangements. The advent of an LNG-focused risk group underscores a shift from pipeline dependency to diversified import infrastructure, aligning with the REPowerEU goals. The changes also imply increased coordination among member states with LNG terminals and those without direct access.
Stakeholders face a range of impacts: national authorities must adapt emergency plans to new groupings, potentially adding administrative burdens but gaining clearer coordination; EU gas producers may experience altered market dynamics with LNG prominence rising; EU consumers benefit through more resilient supply diversification but might face transitional uncertainties; and infrastructure operators must support new interconnections, which could incur operational costs.
This regulation marks a continuation of the EU’s evolving energy security strategy post-2022 crisis. The Commission expects further dialogue with the Gas Coordination Group and anticipates reactions from Member States and agencies like ACER. The update sets a new operational framework for gas security cooperation, signaling ongoing adjustments in a fluid geopolitical energy landscape.