11. Member States shall take all necessary measures to ensure the continuous operation of the underground natural gas storage facilities on their respective territories. Those underground natural gas storage facilities may cease operations only where technical and safety requirements are not met or where the certifying authority concludes, after conducting an assessment and having taken into account the opinion of the European Network of Transmission System Operators for Gas (the ‘ENTSO for Gas’), that such a cessation would not weaken the security of natural gas supply at Union or national level.
Appropriate compensatory measures shall be taken, where appropriate, if cessation of operations is not allowed.