Denmark is one of the few countries in Europe that has ambitiously and timely implemented legislation, the EU Methane Regulation, which limits leaks and emissions of the extremely climate-damaging greenhouse gas methane and effectively reduces energy waste. Denmark is thus a role model for the whole of Europe. However, massive pressure against the legislation has now resulted in this effort being lost, with major consequences for both security of supply, energy prices and global warming. 

"It is worrying that parts of Europe are under American pressure to relax regulations that partly make us less dependent on oil states and partly reduce our gas needs and keep prices down by reducing sloppiness and waste," says Britt Dam, energy advisor to the Green Transition Denmark. 

Amid geopolitical unrest that threatens energy supplies and drives up oil and gas prices worldwide, the Trump administration is now tightening the screws and directly linking Europe's access to favorable LNG terms to demands that the EU not change the trade agreement between the two parties. At the same time, the US is increasing pressure to weaken the EU's Methane Regulation (EUMR), which specifically sets requirements for, among other things, the detection and repair of leaks in the energy sector, including for imports from countries such as the US. They are backed by certain member states and large parts of the oil and gas industry, which, under allegations that the EUMR threatens security of supply, are demanding deregulation and postponement. 

However, several analyses emphasize that the link between the deployment of the EUMR and the threat to security of supply is a fallacy. Most recently, the International Energy Agency (IEA), in a recently published report, emphasized that addressing methane emissions can strengthen energy security in the midst of the crisis. The IEA estimates that well-known reduction measures could release up to 200 billion m³ of natural gas annually – equivalent to almost double the LNG volume lost from the Hormuz crisis so far. Of this, around 15 billion m³ could be released quickly with a direct impact on the market in the short term. 

The pressure to weaken regulation therefore looks like yet another threat from the US that goes against the interests of Denmark and Europe. The pressure has escalated towards the publication of the Commission's long-awaited guidelines, which are crucial for ambitious and harmonised implementation of the EUMR across member states. A leaked draft on sanctions and fines, which the Green Transition Council has been given access to, indicates that the Americans are getting their way. Denmark may therefore in practice be forced to roll back its existing legislation on sanctions and fines. This constitutes a crucial tool for enforcement, and the Commission has asked the Danish Energy Agency to present its model to the Commission and other member states at a previous expert group meeting. The purpose of these meetings is to exchange experiences between countries, and the Danish model has also been highlighted as best in class in a comparative analysis conducted by Ecologic.  

Denmark has shown that implementation is possible in practice, and should serve as a model for the Commission's further work. However, the leaked document tells a different, frightening story. It gives member states unprecedented flexibility to postpone or suspend sanctions on the grounds of energy security. At the same time, the criteria are unclear and not time-limited, and enforcement of the legislation could in practice be put out of action indefinitely. This poses a serious risk that harmonisation between countries will become a race-towards-the-bottom, with serious consequences for energy security, price stability and climate. 

With Denmark's ambitious methane legislation, and with the Danish Energy Commissioner Dan Jørgensen at the head of the table in the rollout of methane regulation - who as the then Danish Minister of Climate Change was one of the forces behind the global target for methane reductions - Denmark needs to once again step into character to defend its own and Europe's interests against American threats and pressure.