LONDON, Sept. 29 (Xinhua) -- The European Union (EU) has paid an extra 100 billion euros (about 113.3 billion U.S. dollars) for the same volume of fossil fuel imports since the start of the U.S.-Iran war, EU Energy Commissioner Dan Jorgensen said Tuesday.
He was speaking at a meeting of the bloc's energy ministers in Dublin, in Ireland, which currently holds the rotating presidency of the EU.
According to the Financial Times, Jorgensen told journalists that the EU had not received "one extra molecule of gas or oil" - despite paying so much more.
Noting that rising global energy prices were hurting Europe's industries and consumers, Jorgensen said, "We are entering a winter that currently looks so challenging that we want to eliminate any uncertainties that can be eliminated."
His remarks came after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to impose a ban on diesel exports last week, pushing up already high prices for refined oil products. Nevertheless, U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright later expressed skepticism about the merits of a full diesel export ban, and Jorgensen said he was happy about this.
Meanwhile, Irish Energy Minister Darragh O'Brien said he had spoken with U.S. administration officials during meetings at last week's United Nations General Assembly, and a 90-day diesel export ban was unlikely to happen.
EU member states are currently discussing measures to prepare for a winter of high energy prices. Jorgensen has urged member states to consider ways to cut demand, continue filling gas storage facilities to at least 80 percent of capacity, and adopt "targeted and temporary" measures to address high prices. ■
