The European Union has reached a preliminary agreement on gas regulation. This will allow the countries to to effectively ban the supply of liquefied natural gas from Russia and Belarus without new energy sanctions. This was reported by Bloomberg, according to UNN.
The Regulation will contain provisions allowing Member States to impose restrictions on the supply of natural gas, including liquefied natural gas (LNG), from Russia or Belarus in order to protect the essential security interests of Member States or the EU, while taking into account security of supply and diversification objectives.
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The European Parliament and the Council of the EU, representing member states, approved the on Friday, December 8, part of a package establishing common rules for natural gas, renewable gases and hydrogen. This way, the bloc is preparing to finally abandon fossil fuels. from fossil fuels. In particular, the adoption of this package will allow the governments of EU member states to temporarily ban Russian and Belarusian exporters from booking the infrastructure capacities required for LNG and natural gas.
Despite the absence of pan-European sanctions against Russian gas, this step is one of the tools to influence the reorientation of raw material supplies, to avoid buying it from the aggressor state that attacked Ukraine.
It is noted that while pipeline flows of natural gas have fallen to a record low, LNG supplies from Moscow have increased. Energy Commissioner EU Energy Commissioner Kadri Simson earlier this year called for a halt to Russian LNG, saying that companies should not extend long-term contracts after the current ones expire.
Some European countries have already stopped buying Russian LNG, for example UK, Poland and the Baltic states.
For years, energy has been a weapon of Russia against the economy and solidarity of the EU and its partners. ... We are also introducing a legal option for EU countries to stop all gas imports from Russia. This is the most ambitious legislation of its kind in history. .
The publication notes that the regulation still needs official approval of the European Parliament and member states in the Council to become law.