Natural gas should be
priced in a flexible way and it is in the industry's own interest to
diversify away from the historical link with oil prices, the European
Union energy chief said Wednesday.
Guenther Oettinger's
comments -- made at a conference with Russia's energy minister --
come as EU antitrust authorities investigate OAO Gazprom's (GAZP.RS)
practice of linking the price of gas in long-term contracts with that
of oil.
"It is in the gas industry's own interest
to price gas in a flexible way and not just" with an oil link,
Oettinger said.