Concerted action to curb energy reliance

Against the backdrop of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the European Union seeks to reduce its Russian gas imports by two thirds by the end of this year, and to fully eliminate them by 2027. Alternatives to Russian gas and solidarity between EU member states are seen as possible solutions on the short-term to counteract Gazprom’s decision to suspend gas deliveries to Poland and Bulgaria. The president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, described Moscow’s decision as blackmail and gave assurances that gas reserves are solid across the entire community bloc. Meanwhile, the EU is working on the sixth package of sanctions against Russia, which might target Russian oil, banks in the Russian Federation and Belarus, as well as more individuals and businesses.

The EU assumes that some countries are capable of eliminating Russian oil imports by the end of 2022, whereas others, East-European countries in particular, are concerned by the possible impact such a decision might have on the market. For instance, Germany, one of biggest buyers of Russian oil in the world, seems willing to accept an embargo by the end of the year.  In response to Russia’s invasion in Ukraine, Berlin reported major headway in curbing its reliance on Russian energy imports. According to some European diplomats, quoted by Reuters, countries such as Austria, Hungary, Italy and Slovakia have some gas reserves. Moreover, the spokesman of Prime Minister Orban’s cabinet claims it is important the EU should not accept sanctions that would prevent the import of Russian gas or oil in the future.

As regards Italy, Azerbaijan announced it could double the volume of natural gas delivered to this country, although that would require increasing the transport capacity of the Trans Adriatic Pipeline. At the same time, countries in Eastern Europe are joining efforts to develop joint projects and share resources, with a view to countering Russia’s monopoly on the gas market and curb the EU’s dependency on Russian gas. A pipeline linking Greece to Bulgaria is expected to be finalized by June, and will provide the two countries and their neighbors with new connections to the gas grid.

As regards Romania, both president Klaus Iohannis, as well as Prime Minister Nicolae Ciucă, had talks on Friday with Bulgarian Prime Minister, Kiril Petkov, about improving the energy inter-connection of the two countries. In turn, the United States announced in March they would supply Europe with an additional 15 billion cubic meters of liquefied natural gas (LNG), with a view to increasing transports to 50 billion per year over time. Experts say that this amount of LNG, although substantial, will not be able to fully replace Europe’s Russian gas imports, which currently stand at some 155 billion cubic meters per year. (Daniela Budu, Radio Romania International))