Russian gas company Gazprom will further reduce gas deliveries to Europe, with the Russian company mentioning a ‘disagreement between the parties on the application of contracts.’ The following information has been shared by French energy company Engie.
Deliveries of Russian gas to the European continent have already declined significantly since the start of the war in Ukraine, with Russia now exporting just 1.5 terawatt-hours per month, Engie stated in a press release. In July, the share of Russian gas in Engie’s gas portfolio constituted just 4%.
Engie stated that it has already enacted measures to continue supplies to its customers in the event of a complete interruption to Russian gas supplies.
As per information shared by Engie, “It is implementing a series of measures to support its clients and the European Union economy. In France, Engie is providing an average of €100 in energy vouchers to 880,000 customers and has created a €60 million fund for small and medium enterprises.
The company in Belgium states that it “contributes significantly to the tax effort” and has offered to stagger customer payments.
Gazprom has been accused of deliberately frustrating the supply of natural gas in Europe, effectively “weaponizing” energy. Russia has significantly reduced the delivery of gas to Europe through the Nord Stream pipeline, citing technical issues and disputes over contracts.
Europe is trying to wean itself off Russian gas, both in order to liberate itself from Russia’s energy influence and to prevent the sale of gas from funding Russia’s war efforts in Ukraine. Most EU Member States have committed to a 15% reduction in demand for gas.