The Russian gas “case” continues to cause headaches for European leaders, as the old continent suffered one of the biggest energy crises in its modern history, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. As oilprice.com reports, during 2022, Russia’s non-use of natural gas seriously worsened the continent’s energy security, causing a huge increase in prices. As a result, the European Commission implemented the REPowerEU plan to eliminate imports of Russian fossil fuels, diversify energy suppliers and produce more clean energy.
Europe was forced to increase imports of the much more expensive LNG from the United States, which ranged from 283,168 million to 424,752 million cubic meters per month and soared to approximately 2,831,680 billion cubic meters in the month after the invasion.
Europe turning its back on Russian gas
The decline in Russian gas imports has been rapid since the start of the war, from 45% of total imports to just 15% today. EU member states agreed to fill underground gas storage facilities to 80% of their capacity by 1 November 2022. However, with a lot of cooperation, EU countries have surpassed this target and reached 95% of gas storage capacity.
Under the REPowerEU plan, to end dependence on Russia, the EU has diversified its supplies and drastically reduced imports of Russian fossil fuels. EU sanctions have banned seaborne imports of Russian crude oil and refined petroleum products, as well as Russian coal.
The shift to renewables
The shift away from Russia has meant that fossil fuels, including natural gas, are gradually losing their dominance in the EU’s energy strategy. Renewables remain by far Europe’s main source of energy. In 2024, green energy contributed to 48% of the EU’s energy mix, followed by nuclear power at 24% and fossil fuels at 28% – the lowest share ever recorded.
Indeed, last year saw the lowest greenhouse gas emissions from the EU’s energy sector, down 13% compared to 2023, and while nuclear power remains the continent’s main source of energy, wind power is overtaking natural gas. Last year, solar power in Europe overtook coal for the first time in history.
The green direction existed before the war
This trend predates Russia’s war in Ukraine. It is recalled that since the adoption of the European Green Deal in 2019, wind and solar energy have gradually pushed coal to the sidelines and led natural gas into a structural decline. Europe’s green energy transition has gained additional momentum in the last three years due to Russia’s war.
The European Union has implemented measures to significantly shorten the permitting process for renewable energy projects, including the designation of specific “Renewable Energy Acceleration Zones”, where projects are subject to simplified and faster permitting procedures, with the aim of accelerating the development of renewable energy sources, such as solar and wind power, across the Union.
The revised Renewable Energy Directive
(RED III) includes provisions to significantly reduce the time it takes to obtain permits for renewable energy projects, particularly in designated acceleration areas. Last year, Europe updated its Recommendation on accelerating the permitting process for renewable energy projects and accompanying guidance on good practices to speed up the permitting process for renewable energy projects and to facilitate power purchase agreements.
Europe still needs natural gas
However, according to the report, it is unlikely that Europe will be able to eliminate natural gas from its energy mix any time soon. Gas prices in Europe have recently risen to high levels due to colder than average weather combined with lower wind power generation. Unlike fossil fuels, renewable energy systems largely lack the capacity to scale up production to meet sudden increases in demand or unforeseen energy crises. These crises are usually short-term and transient, mainly due to short-term supply disruptions, rather than a lack of long-term access to foreign energy. Countries that have been heavily dependent on Russia (e.g. Germany) for the functioning of their entire economies have faced major challenges in particular.
This is a major reason why some European leaders are calling for the return of Russian gas to European markets and have stated their intention to pressure European authorities and Ukraine to intensify talks on the possible resumption of Russian gas transit through Ukraine. Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has revealed that he does not rule out resuming gas flows through Ukraine after a five-year transit agreement between Moscow and Kiev expired.
Fico has been pressuring President Volodymyr Zelensky to restart the transit, citing higher energy prices for Slovakia and the region. European Union leaders met on Thursday for an emergency summit to discuss Ukraine and European defense. “The pipeline that runs through Slovakia has a capacity of 100 billion cubic meters,” Fico told reporters in Brussels. “I want to do everything to ensure that it is used in the future,” he added.
