The EU has become the largest buyer of Gazprom! Record breaking purchase of liquefied natural gas from Russia
According to the German news television channel website on August 30th, although Russia's other energy exports to Europe have largely stalled, EU importers are purchasing Russian liquefied natural gas in record quantities. According to a report by the non-governmental organization Global Witness, EU countries purchased 22 million cubic meters of liquefied natural gas for shipping from Russia in the first seven months of this year. This is an increase of about 40% compared to the same period in 2021. The value of these imported liquefied natural gas is approximately 5.3 billion euros.
This makes the EU Russia's largest liquefied natural gas customer to date. Spain and Belgium imported approximately 7.5 million cubic meters and 7 million cubic meters of Russian liquefied natural gas, respectively, making them the second and third largest buyers of Russian liquefied natural gas after China. The analysis of the Global Witness Association is based on data from Kepler, a raw material information provider.
▲ Data image: On July 14th, a liquefied natural gas tanker operated by Gazprom in the Baltic Sea near the port of Ustiluga.
It is reported that since the beginning of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the EU has gradually imposed sanctions and restrictions on the import of Russian raw materials, and the export of raw materials is Russia's main source of income. The European Union has imposed an embargo on Russian coal, crude oil, and diesel. Last summer, Russia basically stopped supplying natural gas through pipelines, which is an important energy source for many EU countries. The EU hopes to no longer purchase any fossil fuels from Russia by 2027.
However, currently there are no restrictions on liquefied natural gas in Russia. In order to make up for the shortage of pipeline natural gas from Russia, especially companies in Spain, Belgium, and France have significantly increased their imports of liquefied natural gas from Russia. French energy giant Total has become the largest foreign client of Russian liquefied natural gas since the beginning of this year with an import volume of 4.1 million cubic meters.
![The EU has become the largest buyer of Gazprom! Record breaking purchase of liquefied natural gas from Russia](https://a5qu.com/upload/images/9760f05e5a39d1967bf76e55fb702e3d.jpg)
According to reports, European politicians have criticized the import of Russian liquefied natural gas. Spanish Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Ecological Transition Theresa Rivera called the situation "absurd" and called for an embargo on Russian liquefied natural gas. However, the EU is concerned that banning imports of Russian liquefied natural gas may lead to another price surge in the European energy market. The European Commission has proposed a plan that each member state should decide on its own whether to allow Russian liquefied natural gas to be injected into its natural gas network. However, the plan has not yet been approved by the European Parliament.