EU countries have failed to approve a crucial overhaul of the bloc’s energy market because of disagreements between France and Germany on state aid for power producers.
Energy ministers meeting in Luxembourg on Monday were due to find a common position on a reform of the EU electricity market that would pave the way for the uptake of cleaner power and prevent the price volatility prompted by cuts to the bloc’s gas supply by Russia last year.
But after several hours of negotiation, Paris and Berlin remained at loggerheads over whether state-backed contracts that ensure that electricity producers only charge a set price for power and return additional profits should be applied to existing operators — a move that would allow France to subsidise its nuclear fleet more easily.