Stay informed of free updates
Just register at EU energy Myft Digest – Delivered directly in your reception box.
The European Commission will establish a deadline in 2027 for EU companies to break any energy contract remaining with Russia and move to other sources, including the United States, according to officials.
The plan, which will be announced on Tuesday, was kept closely before the publication by senior EU officials suspicious of its probable impact on the energy market. It marks an intensification of the efforts of the block to wear from Russian fossil fuels since the large -scale invasion of Ukraine by Moscow in 2022.
While Russian oil and coal are subject to strict sanctions, the EU has struggled to ban imports of gas due to the opposition of pro-Russian governments such as Hungary and Slovakia which support that this would increase energy prices.
Four informed managers of the Commission document said that it would require companies to end all cash markets in cash with Russian suppliers by the end of this year and to end all long -term contracts by 2027.
The measures, which once announced must still be approved by the majority of EU member states and the European Parliament, aim to bypass the need for the unanimous approval of the Member States to impose gas sanctions. Hungary and Slovakia have declared that they would block any movement of sanctions.
Three of the officials said Brussels would also be pressure for the authorities to receive greater monitoring of commercial contracts in order to trace Russian fuel buyers.
Before 2022, the EU obtained more than two fifths of its imports of pipeline gas and approximately 28% of crude oil imported from Russia. The share of Russia has since fallen at around 13% of gas imports, including liquefied natural gas, and less than 3% of oil imports.
Despite a significant decrease in pipeline gas, the EU has increased its IMP imports from Russia, shipments reaching the record levels last year.
According to KPLER, a data and analysis company, there were 17 shipments from the Yamal LNG factory in Russia to EU destinations in April. The ships transported 1.2 million tonnes of LNG in the block, with approximately 59% of the cargo delivered in France and 23% in Belgium. The rest went to the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain.
Unlike Hungary and Slovakia, other member countries, including the Netherlands and Belgium, said they would support the sanctions of Russian gas in order to force companies to reduce their Russian contracts.
“This push to get to zero will not be easy,” said a main EU diplomat, adding that companies should pay more for gas if they were excluded to buy in Russia. “If you want to raise any secret on commercial contracts, there will be a price for this.”
The diplomat said that it would be difficult to prevent bypassing the proposed rules, such as the gas sent by the Turkstream pipeline ostensibly Azerbaijan, but potentially comprising supply to Russia.
The Commission’s document should partly tell Washington that the EU is ready to buy more American LNG as part of an agreement to reduce its trade deficit, officials said.
The elimination plan will also cover nuclear fuels and spare parts. Finland, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary all depend on different expanders of Russian nuclear technology.
All these elements, with the exception of Hungary, signed contracts with the American nuclear company Westinghouse to replace their Russian fuel rods, but the parts remain difficult to replace because few non -Russian manufacturers make spare parts for former Soviet style reactors.
An EU official said that the roadmap was aimed at ensuring that the Member States “would have difficulties” if they maintained their Russian contracts.
Bloomberg first pointed out the date of elimination of 2027.
Additional Paola Tamma reports in Brussels and Chris Cook in London
