- The first shipment from Russian giant Gazprom’s new LNG plant in Portovaya is heading to Greece.
- And this, even if the EU has pledged to reduce the bloc’s dependence on Russian natural gas.
- The EU – which depends on Russia for gas – faces an energy crisis as supplies have slowed.
Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the European Union pledged to reduce the bloc’s dependence on Russian natural gas. But it looks like new deals are still in the works.
The first shipment from Russia’s Portovaya liquefied natural gas or LNG plant, which sits near the closed Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline, will be flown to EU country Greece, Bloomberg reported on Saturday, citing a person with direct knowledge of the situation.
The identity of the buyer and the size of the cargo were not disclosed, but Greece has only one LNG facility which supplies the domestic market, as well as Bulgaria – also an EU country. – and North Macedonia.
This is at odds with EU plans, rolled out in March, which aim to cut the bloc’s dependence on Russian gas by two-thirds by the end of 2022 and end its dependence on with regard to Russian fuel supplies “well before 2030”.
Europe depends on Russia for 40% of its natural gas needs, such as cooking in homes and lighting power plants. He worries about a winter energy crisis, as Russia cut natural gas flows to the continent, citing sanctions-related challenges.
Challenges abound, especially in the short term after Russia cut off natural gas supplies via the key Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline. Europe is setting up LNG terminals to counter the energy crisis, as these facilities will convert supercooled fuel into gas.
Sweden, another EU country, also still imports Russian LNG. Last week, activists from Greenpeace Nordic protested against Russian imports by preventing an LNG carrier from unloading Russian fuel in Sweden.
“The fact that Russian fossil gas is still allowed to enter Sweden, more than six months after Putin began his invasion of Ukraine, is unacceptable,” Karolina Carlsson, campaign manager at Greenpeace Nordic, said in a statement. communicated on September 8.