Diverse EU Energy Needs Complicate Complete Shift Away From Russian Gas

rewrite news article with same meaning and sentiments: The Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 led Russia to reduce its natural gas supplies to Europe in an act of retaliation against Western sanctions. Several Kremlin-linked media sources predicted that this action would drastically reduce the quality of life for Europeans, including freezing conditions due to loss of heating.

Although energy costs indeed surged, Europe managed to weather the winter aided by unseasonably mild climate conditions. Solutions to the Russian gas shortage included stockpiling supplies, increasing liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports [largely from the United States], urging consumers to decrease consumption and increase efficiency, and relying more on renewable energy sources like wind and solar.

Prior to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the European Union (EU) depended heavily on Russia for gas, with Russia supplying greater than 40% of EU's gas imports. The largest net importer of Russian gas within the EU was Germany, with 55 billion cubic meters in 2021, which constituted over 65% of the country's gas imports.

However, imports of Russian gas to the EU have been reduced by about one-third compared to levels before the invasion. This was partially due to Russia reducing supplies to Europe, forcing countries like Bulgaria, Poland, Finland, and Netherlands to reject payment for Russian gas in rubles, a condition specified by Russia for "unfriendly countries".

At present, Russian gas deliveries to Europe via pipelines are primarily restricted to two routes: first, through the European leg of TurkStream, a joint project between Gazprom and Turkey that ships gas from Russia to Turkey and then to Central and Southeastern Europe; second, via Ukraine through the Sudzha entry point on the border with Russia.

Halting the remaining gas flows through Ukraine would likely impact European countries like Austria, Slovakia, Italy, and Croatia, which still receive Russian gas through this transit route. Simultaneously, since February 2022, Russia has increased LNG exports to the EU from pre-war levels. The United States currently dominates EU's LNG supply (40%), Russia and Qatar occupy the next position with an equal market share of approximately 13%.

Despite the reduction in Russian gas imports, it is unlike that the EU would be able to entirely eliminate Russia as a supplier. The continued European reliance on Russia gas may be due to the difficulties of landlocked countries receiving LNG and the comparatively cheaper Russian gas. It is also expected that the EU's goal of completely eliminating Russian gas from its energy mix by 2027, as described in the REPowerEU Plan, is likely to be delayed.

However, dependence on Russian gas is currently much more manageable than in the past. "Russian gas dependence is no longer the economy-wrecking menace for the EU that it once was," observed Akos Losz, senior research associate at Columbia University's Center on Global Energy Policy.
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