EU greenlights a stepwise halt on Russian gas

It is not the first time that the EU Council has targeted Russian gas since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. 

"It is time to turn off the tap," President of the EU Commission Ursula von der Leyen emphasized in an earlier statement when announcing the Union's 19th sanctions package against Russia last fall.

Today, the EU Council formally adopted the regulation of a stepwise ban of both liquified natural gas (LNG) and pipeline gas into the EU States by law. LNG is set to be stopped January 1, 2027, followed by a ban on pipeline gas September 30, 2027.

It will be possible to extend the deadline to November 1 if there are difficulties filling storages facilities with non-Russian gas.

To substitute for Russian export, the EU is following their REPowerEU plan, which got implemented after the Versailles Declaration of 11 March 2022. The goal of this plan is to strengthen Europe's independence while reducing Russia's influence in the energy market.

Less Russian gas

Russia is still one of the largest suppliers of gas to Europe, and was responsible for approximately 19 percent in 2024. The percentage includes both pipeline gas and LNG.

Despite the numbers, the import of Russian gas has decreased significantly during since the all-out war started in 2022. For comparison, Russia exported 150 billion cubic meters of gas to Europe in 2021 and just one-third, 51 billion cubic meters, in 2024.

To substitute for the decrease of Russian gas, both Norway and the United States have increased their export. The numbers presented by the European Commission also show Europe's decrease in demand.

Resistance in the commission

Out of the 27 EU states, two countries voted against the import ban. Both Hungary and Slovakia emphasized their struggle as landlocked countries.

The State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic, Marek Eštok states:

"Slovakia is a landlocked country without direct access to LNG terminals. Despite our significant investment and development in interconnectors, the bottlenecked infrastructure outside Slovak territory still limits access to a sufficient alternative gas supply as well as the ability to secure them at reasonable cost."

The member of Hungary's parliament in the EU Council, Barna Pál Zsigmond, follows up with similar arguments, representing a landlocked country. In the EU Council, Zsigmond also underlines that Hungary will take the matter to the European court following this ban.

Tankers in the Barents Sea

A large amount of LNG from the Russian Arctic is shipped through the Barents Sea on its way to Europe. Most of this will come to an end because Yamal LNG will be denied access to the European market in 2027.

Lately, another large production facility, the Arctic LNG-2, has been hindered by international sanctions imposed after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. 

The Arctic LNG-2 is likewise operated by Novatek.

The facility's takers have been observed turning off their AIS as they shuttle to the 400-metre-long Saam floating storage unit in the Ura Bay, not far from Russia's border with Norway.

These "shadow tankers" have operated despite sanctions from the US, EU and UK.