12.11.2010 Official Journal of the European Union L 295/1 | (Legislative acts) REGULATIONS REGULATION (EU) No 994/2010 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 20 October 2010 concerning measures to safeguard security of gas supply and repealing Council Directive 2004/67[EC (Text with EEA relevance) THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 194(2) thereof, Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission, Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee (1), Having consulted the Committee of the Regions, Acting in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure (2), Whereas: (1)  Natural gas (gas) is an essential component in the energy supply of the European Union, constituting one quarter of primary energy supply and contributing mainly to electricity generation, heating, feedstock for industry and fuel for transportation. (2)  Gas consumption in Europe has increased rapidly during the last 10 years. With decreasing domestic production, gas imports have increased even more rapidly, thus creating a higher import dependence and the need to () Opinion of 20 January 2010 (not yet published in the Official Journal). (3) Position of the European Parliament of 21 September 2010 (not yet published in the Official Journal) and decision of the Council of 11 October 2010. address security of gas supply aspects. In addition, some Member States find themselves on a gas island as a result of an absence of infrastructure connections with the rest of the Union. (3)  Given the importance of gas in the energy mix of the Union, this Regulation aims at demonstrating to gas customers that all the necessary measures are being taken to ensure their continuous supply, particularly in case of difficult climatic conditions and in the event of disruption. It is recognised that these objectives should be achieved through the most cost-efficient measures in order not to affect the relative competitiveness of this fuel compared to other fuels. 4)  Council Directive 2004/67EC (%) established for the first time a legal framework at Community level to safeguard security of gas supply and to contribute to the proper functioning of the internal gas market in the case of supply disruptions. It established the Gas Coordination Group which has been useful to exchange information and define common actions between Member States, the Commission, the gas industry and consumers. The Network of Energy Security Correspondents endorsed by the European Council in December 2006 has improved the capacity to collect information and has provided early warning of potential threats to the security of energy supply. The new internal energy market legislation adopted by the European Parliament and the Council in July 2009 constitutes an important step to complete the internal energy market and has an explicit objective to enhance the Union's security of energy supply. (5)  However, under the current measures regarding the security of gas supply that have been taken at Union level, Member States still enjoy a large margin of discretion as to the choice of measures. Where the () OJ L 127, 29.4.2004, p. 92.