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Paris has urged for better identification of companies shipping Russian gas at EU ports in a bid to curb the influx of Russian fossil fuels into the bloc.
France, together with nine other countries such as Austria and the Czech Republic, presented a proposal prior to an EU energy ministers’ meeting requesting the European Commission to mandate Russian liquefied natural gas suppliers to clearly identify themselves during cargo unloading at EU ports and enhance transparency on import volumes.
The document highlighted that some gas suppliers importing Russian LNG at EU ports are currently not adequately identified.
French energy minister Agnès Pannier-Runacher emphasized the need for “utmost transparency regarding [LNG] flows” to reduce dependency on Russian gas.
In the first half of 2024, gas imports from Russia rose by 11% year on year, despite the EU’s efforts to reduce reliance on Russian fossil fuels, as per data from the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis.
The IEEFA reported that France and its partners identified instances where gas importers had booked capacity to import Russian LNG at EU ports but were not properly identified.
France, Spain, and Belgium accounted for 87% of Europe’s Russian LNG imports during that period, with France’s imports more than doubling while Belgium’s decreased by 16%, according to the IEEFA.
Belgium, which has advocated for EU sanctions on Russian LNG, revealed plans to track the origin of LNG to enable the tracking and restriction of Russian LNG molecules if necessary.
Efforts to reduce Russian fuel imports into the EU have faced opposition from Hungary, which has resisted sanctions and sought to extend existing agreements with Gazprom.
Discussions regarding the extension of the contract allowing Russian gas transit through Ukraine, despite the ongoing conflict, remain delicate.
Germany’s state secretary for economic affairs and climate action expressed concern over the increase in Russian fuel imports and called for a roadmap to eliminate imports from Russia across all fuel types.
The EU recently took a step towards limiting Russian LNG by sanctioning transshipments of Russian fuel from EU ports to third countries.
Concerns have been raised by EU countries, including the Netherlands, about the unintended consequence of the ban leading to increased shipments into the EU as re-exportation is no longer permitted.
TotalEnergies, a French energy company and importer of Russian LNG, stated its commitment to fulfilling long-term contracts for imports from Russia’s Yamal LNG plant, which cannot be suspended unless specific government sanctions are imposed.