The Dutch government is working to stop imports of liquefied natural gas from Russia, Energy Minister Rob Jetten said.
Source. Bloomberg
The Netherlands has stopped signing new contracts for the import of LNG from Russia this year, and is working to terminate existing contracts, Jetten said in an interview with the publication.
"We have to do everything we can to make sure we don't have Russian fossil energy in our system, and we've been successful in getting rid of (Russian) coal, pipeline gas and oil," Yetten said.
"We are having many conversations with companies to phase out existing LNG agreements," he added.
The decision applies to both term contracts and spot market transactions. The Netherlands is one of the four largest importers of LNG from Russia in Europe. The kingdom continues to purchase Russian LNG under contracts concluded until 2023, the agency notes. They account for about 15% of the country's total imports.
Gas supplies to other EU countries transit through the Netherlands, so the decision to abandon Russian LNG will affect the whole of Europe, Bloomberg notes.
Earlier, the decision to stop importing LNG from Russia was announced by the authorities of Spain, the largest buyer of Russian liquefied natural gas in Europe. In mid-March, Spanish Deputy Prime Minister Teresa Ribera recommended that companies not sign new contracts for its purchase, Bloomberg reported.
Last year, EU countries lost more than half of their pipeline gas supplies from Russia. To replace the shortage of natural resources, EU states have increased purchases of Russian LNG. Its imports in 2022 increased by 35% compared to 2021, to 19.2 billion cubic meters, according to analysts at the Bruegel Center.
Background. At the same time, it was reported that the European Union wants to abandon Russian liquefied natural gas.