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Revitalizing Europe - the European Union is preparing for a possible freeze on Russian gas - News

Revitalizing Europe – the European Union is preparing for a possible freeze on Russian gas – News

  • The EU will be able to deal with a partial disruption in gas supplies from Russia. This is what the President of the European Union Commission Ursula von der Leyen told the press in Strasbourg.
  • However, a complete moratorium on delivery requires further measures.
  • So talks have been held with important LNG exporters about increasing shipments.

According to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, the European Union has taken extensive precautions in case Russian gas supplies are interrupted.

In order to mitigate the risks of bottlenecks, the EU Commission has spoken with important liquid gas exporters, such as the United States, Qatar and Egypt, von der Leyen, among others, told the German news agency.

Discussions with importers

In addition, it has been negotiated with important importers of liquid gas such as Japan and South Korea that they will place their own orders at the disposal of the European Union. For example, ships containing liquid gas can be sent from Qatar to Europe instead of Japan.

Thanks to these efforts, the European Union imported about ten trillion cubic meters of liquid gas in January – a record figure, according to von der Leyen. The current situation has also helped the European Union expand its pipeline network since Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014 and increase the capacity of liquid gas stations.

Our models show that we are on the safer side if gas supplies are reduced or Gazprom’s gas supplies continue to decline.

“Our models now show that we are on the safer side with reduced supplies or further reductions in gas shipments by (Russian gas company) Gazprom,” von der Leyen says. However, in the event of a complete cessation of delivery, emergency measures must still be taken.

great dependency

The European Union is highly dependent on Russian gas supplies. It imports about 90 percent of its natural gas. 40 percent of imports come from Gazprom. Thus, stopping Russian deliveries could seriously harm the union of countries.

Legend:

Ursula von der Leyen said the EU currently covers 24 percent of its energy needs with gas.

Images by imago / Gottfried Chiploch

According to von der Leyen, the Russian military deployment on the border with Ukraine confirms that Europe must reduce its dependence on Russian gas. However, spring is not far away. Then, as temperatures rise, the power requirements for heating will decrease and the situation will calm down.

In the event of Russian military aggression against Ukraine, she again threatened rapid retaliation in the form of sanctions. “We have worked very hard to be able to provide a joint answer with our partners within a few days,” von der Leyen said.