Europe is developing contingency plans in the event of a complete halt to Russian gas imports, the EU energy commissioner said, warning that any country runs the risk of being cut off by Moscow.
Kadri Simson said the EU was struggling to store as much gas as possible and could replace most of Russia’s deliveries this year, but that it would have to do more if there was a “total disruption” to supply.
Plans being drawn up by the European Commission would include measures to ration the supply of gas to industry, according to people familiar with the proposals, while saving households.
Russian state gas supplier Gazprom has already cut off gas supplies to Poland, Bulgaria and Finland for refusing to comply with the Kremlin’s decree to pay its bills in rubles instead of euros or dollars.
“We are facing a situation where any member state could be next [to be cut off]Simson said in an interview. “So far we have been able to address the security concerns of the supply of these three Member States, mainly with the help of the solidarity of the neighbors.”
“This year, if there is a total disruption, we are preparing contingency plans,” he said.
EU Energy Commissioner Kadri Simson says it would be feasible for the bloc to replace two-thirds of Russian gas this year © Olivier Hoslet / EPA / Shutterstock
Industry accounts for 27% of gas use in the EU, with chemicals, ceramics, food production and glass the main consumers. The commission has said it would protect key food, safety and health and safety supply chains.
Simson insisted it would be “possible” to replace two-thirds of Russian gas this year, as the commission had previously promised, expressing optimism about efforts to secure alternative supplies.
The EU has received record deliveries of liquefied natural gas this year, which has allowed it to start filling underground reservoirs. On May 25 they were 44% full, compared to 36% the previous year.
Simson said EU countries were rapidly increasing their capacity to handle LNG, which arrives by tanker truck and then converted back to gas and shipped by pipeline.
Energy companies of several major gas consumers, such as Italy and Germany, have said they will comply with the Russian decree, which has been amended to prevent Russia’s sanctioned central bank from directly participating in the conversion of payments made in euros or dollars into rubles.
Simson said: “The first decree was clearly a breach of the sanctions. The current one, if they are paying in euros and announcing that the payment has ended, is a way forward.”
But he warned that each contract was different and that member states must ensure that sanctions are applied.
The commission last week unveiled a € 210 billion plan to eliminate Russian energy in Europe by 2027, which includes targets to reduce energy consumption and invest in renewable energy.
Removing Russian gas is a huge task for the EU, which before the war with Ukraine got 40 percent of its gas supply from Russia. It has now dropped by about 26 percent, the commission said.
Simson said Europe was aiming to cut it to 13 per cent by the end of the year.
Member States will then have to open or expand fixed or floating LNG terminals to manage 19 billion cubic meters annually. Russia supplied 155 billion cubic meters of gas last year.
The Estonian commissioner said Brussels was expecting more gas from the US and Norway and was talking to new suppliers.
“We are working with Egypt and Israel and we hope to have bilateral agreements with them before the summer. We are planning to renew our energy dialogue with Algeria, “he said.
Hungary is blocking a proposed embargo on Russian oil, which last year accounted for 25 percent of EU consumption. But Simson said there was evidence of a boycott of the private sector, which had cut off charges from Russia.
“All these steps are necessary and they are already fulfilling what we expected,” he said.
He agreed that landlocked Central European countries, such as Hungary, which depend on channeled Russian crude, face “bigger challenges” and insisted that the EU must maintain its unity in sanctions.