EU is looking for alternative supply routes in case agreement on Russian gas transit through Ukraine will not be extended – Bloomberg
The European Union is considering other possibilities for transiting Russian gas.
This was stated by Bloomberg, Censor.NET reports.
According to the newspaper, EU countries are preparing for the fact that the agreement on the transit of Russian gas through Ukraine, which expires at the end of the year, will not be extended.
The European Commission argues that even the countries most dependent on Russian supplies, such as Austria and Slovakia, will be able to find alternative sources of supply in the event of a supply interruption.
The European Commission has preliminarily analyzed potential scenarios that could arise as a result of the termination of the transit agreement. It has also modeled the capacity of other pipelines, such as the Turkish Stream, to help compensate for any shortfall.
The publication notes that the European Commission will discuss the issue with member states in February before formally presenting the plan to energy ministers at a meeting in Brussels on March 4.
According to them, there may still be ways for countries and companies that have contracts beyond 2024 to secure gas supplies through Ukraine.
One way is for Russia to supply gas to the Ukrainian border, and then for an EU entity to agree with the Ukrainian gas transmission system operator to transport the gas to Austria, Slovakia, or the Czech Republic.
This week, Ukraine denied that it was ready to renegotiate the transit agreement with Russia after Robert Fico, the Slovak prime minister, said it was possible.
Even without a new agreement, it is likely that Gazprom will maintain supplies for willing EU customers by booking short-term capacity in Ukraine. This is an option that the Russian company can use through capacity auctions.
Although the EU has not imposed sanctions on Russian gas, it is seeking to reduce its energy dependence on Moscow.
Ukraine still remains a key gas transportation route, even though since May 2022, the actual flows of the transit pipeline have been less than 40% of the contracted volumes.
Earlier it was reported that European Commissioner for Energy Kadri Simson called on EU member states that still consume Russian gas to start preparing to stop gas transit from Russia through Ukraine.
