“As of mid-December, Europe imported a record 16.5 million tons of Russian liquefied gas, which exceeds last year’s figure”, — write: www.radiosvoboda.org
As of mid-December, Europe imported a record 16.5 million tons of Russian liquefied gas, which exceeds last year’s import figure of 15.18 mln. tons This figure also exceeds the previous record of 15.21 million tonnes imported in 2022.
Following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the EU has set itself the goal of ending the import of all Russian fossil fuels by 2027. Unlike pipeline gas imports, which have been reduced to a minimum, as well as Russian oil and coal, which are banned in the EU, Russian LNG imports are still permitted and growing.
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Previously, Europe imported about two-fifths (40%) of its gas from Russia, most of which came via pipelines. Currently, total gas imports from Russia, including pipeline gas, are only about 16% of total gas supplies to the EU.
EU officials are convinced the bloc does not need Russian fuel, even if it means agreeing to higher prices to buy gas elsewhere.
But, as the FT writes, Russian LNG accounted for 20% of total marine fuel imports into the EU this year, compared to 15% last year, according to ship tracking data. Not all Russian LNG brought to Europe is consumed in the region, some of it is transshipped and sent to other parts of the world.
The European Commission is asked to better control, so that the operations of unloading Russian LNG must be reported, as required by the 14th package of EU sanctions. The European Commission should demand data on gas suppliers that import liquefied natural gas from the Russian Federation, as well as on the volumes of imported Russian gas, the authors of the appeal insisted.