Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the risk of a prolonged physical supply shortage of nat-ural gas is higher than ever before. While European Union (EU) institutions and member states are discussing the possibility of imposing an embargo or a gradual phase out in this sector, an abrupt shortage may result from a political decision on the supplier’s side. This event would be beyond EU control and requires appropriate contingency plans. However, the EU does not have adequate procedures for managing long-term supply interruptions. High gas prices alone will not be able to deliver the necessary level of savings, and they will also create unfair distribution of reserves.

EU’s preparedness and resilience rests on its ability to adjust gas demand quickly, efficiently and in a fair manner. With gas rationing as the measure of last resort, we propose to develop non-price-based mechanisms, as well as coordinated and voluntary efforts for gas saving on a Euro-pean level. To increase resilience and unlock gas saving potential across sectors, the following steps are recommended: • European institutions and governments should immediately agree on an EU level gas saving target with a clear definition of the contribution expected from each member state. This will allow to reduce imports and support storage refill.

• Building on the initial saving arrangements and experience with their implementation, the EU should be prepared to scale up the gas savings targets for the case of supply interruptions. This may include more far-reaching non-price mechanisms, potent enough to avoid the need for rationing.

• To prepare for the case of rationing as a measure of last resort should savings targets and storage refill levels not be met, there is a need of multi-stakeholder advance planning and consultations.

This process needs to be launched immediately, and must be based on broad stakeholder par-ticipation, to safeguard legitimacy of demand adjustment as well as fair burden sharing. In this policy brief, we outline the way such a process could unfold, and show the potential of non-price mechanisms to trigger savings, using historical examples from other sectors. We also argue for the need to create a special Taskforce at EU level to coordinate the planning and implementation of contingency plans.