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Russia’s imports of liquefied natural gas into the EU reached a record high this year, even as the EU seeks to wean itself from dependence on the country’s gas in the wake of Russia’s all-out war against Ukraine.
According to product data provider Kpler, Europe’s imports of Russian LNG reached a record high of 16.5 million tons as of mid-December, exceeding last year’s imports of 15.18 million tons. This amount also exceeds the previous record of 15.21 million tons of imports in 2022.
“What we’ve seen this year is surprising,” said Ana Maria Jarrah Makarewicz, an analyst at the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis. “Rather than gradually reducing LNG imports from Russia, we are increasing them.”
Following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the EU set a goal to end Russian fossil fuel imports by 2027, but shipments of cryogenic gas arriving at European ports continue to increase. are.
Unlike gas imports via pipelines, which have been reduced to a trickle, and Russian oil and coal, which are banned within the EU, imports of Russian LNG are still allowed and are increasing, but this means It shows how Europe is still struggling to extricate itself from panic. Jarrah Makarewicz said they are taking advantage of cheaper sources.
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Analysts note that purchases of Russian LNG on the spot market have increased this year. According to Rystad Energy, 33% of the EU’s Russian LNG imports came under spot contracts this year, compared to 23% last year. An energy consulting company.
Companies such as Shell and Equinor have announced that they will no longer buy Russian LNG on the spot market. Other traders said that since the invasion, spot cargo contracts often have clauses guaranteeing that the LNG is “not of Russian origin.”
But Christoph Halser, a gas analyst at Rystad, said spot trading has increased this year because traders can “deliver cargo cheaper[from Russia].”
He added that the price of LNG shipped from Russia’s Yamal terminal to Europe is “significantly lower” than gas shipped from the United States.
Until now, Europe has imported about two-fifths of its gas from Russia, mostly via pipelines. Currently, total gas imports from Russia, including pipeline gas, account for only about 16% of the EU’s gas supplies.
EU officials are confident that the bloc does not need Russian fuel, even if it means accepting higher prices to buy gas elsewhere.
However, Russian LNG accounted for 20% of all EU maritime fuel imports this year, up from 15% last year, according to ship tracking data. Not all of the Russian LNG brought into Europe is consumed in the region, with some being reloaded and shipped to other parts of the world.
Imports to France have soared this year, almost doubling from 2023. More than half of the shipments go to the Dunkirk import terminal, according to Kpler data.
French energy companies EDF and TotalEnergies and German state-owned energy company Sefe have contracts to use the terminal there.
Belgium was the second largest importer of Russian LNG. That’s because the country’s Zeebrugge port is one of the few hubs in Europe to transfer LNG from ice-class tankers used in the northern highlands to regular cargo ships. EU governments have agreed to ban the transhipment of Russian LNG from Yamal to non-EU countries, with the measure set to come into force in March 2025.
The EU’s new energy commissioner, Dan Jorgensen, has promised to present a plan next year on how the bloc can meet its 2027 goal of eliminating all fossil fuels in Russia.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen suggested in October that the European Union could increase imports from the United States as a way to appease U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, who threatens wide-ranging trade tariffs.
President Trump has warned that the EU must commit to buying “significant” amounts of U.S. oil and gas or risk facing tariffs.
Additional reporting by Ray Douglas and Daria Mosolova
