US energy chief: EU could stop buying Russian gas in a year
Chris Wright, the U.S. Energy Secretary, said on Friday that the European Union can replace Russian gas with U.S. Liquefied Natural Gas within 6-12 months. The United States has communicated its position to EU officials in this week.
Wright spoke in Brussels on Thursday, when he met EU Energy Commissioner Dan Jorgensen. The U.S. is increasing pressure on Europe to stop Moscow from receiving energy revenues, in an effort to end the conflict in Ukraine.
The EU is currently negotiating proposals that will phase out the imports of Russian gas and oil by January 2028. Short-term contracts will be banned from next year.
Wright was asked how fast the EU could eliminate Russian gas. "I think it could be done easily within 12 months or maybe even within six months," Wright replied.
"I voiced my opinion that we could do it quicker. We could move the dates up on the U.S. end, and it would be a good idea. "I don't think that will happen, but we had a dialogue," he said in reference to his meeting Jorgensen.
A spokesperson for the European Commission declined to comment about Wright's remarks.
Jorgensen, who spoke on Thursday, said that it is unacceptable for the EU to continue to import Russian oil and gas. However, he added that the phase-out by 2028 was ambitious and would prevent EU countries from experiencing energy shortages or price spikes.
Ursula von der Leyen, President of the EU Commission, said that this week Brussels was considering a quicker phase-out of Russian fuels in order to implement new sanctions against Moscow. She did not specify how Brussels would achieve this.
All 27 EU member states must unanimously approve any new sanctions. Hungary and Slovakia were against sanctions on Russian Gas until now. This is why the EU suggested the 2028 phase-out, which could be approved by an increased majority of EU member countries.
EU data shows that Europe will purchase 13% of its natural gas from Russia in this year. This is down from 45% just before Russia invaded Ukraine on a full scale in 2022.
Gas deals are not controlled by the U.S. Government or the EU Commission. They are negotiated between producers and buyers on a global marketplace.
Florence Schmit, energy strategist at Rabobank, said that a quicker Russian gas exit is possible - but it would only be possible if Washington intervened and ensured that U.S. exporters of LNG redirect their supply from other markets to Europe.
Schmit added that a faster phase-out could be achieved with more government intervention and higher prices on the market. The 20-23 billion cubic meters of LNG export capacity, which the U.S. will add to its LNG exports next year, is almost enough to replace EU gas imports from Russia, estimated at 25 bcm in 2018.
Jan-Eric Fahnrich, senior analyst at Rystad Energy, said that an earlier phase out could only be achieved if Asian demand for LNG does not recover significantly next year. This will depend on whether the winter is mild or harsh. Kate Abnett reported, with additional reporting from Nora Buli and Emily Chow at the Norwegian and Milan offices; Kirby Donovan edited.
(source: Reuters)
