Europe Prepares Strategy to Abandon Russian Gas, Oil, and Coal

European Union countries should immediately start filling gas reserves to prepare for next winter, which will be one of the conclusions at the EU summit next week, according to the Euractiv portal, which also states that Europe is preparing a strategy to abandon Russian gas, oil, and coal.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has prompted leaders from 27 EU member states to agree last week on a gradual abandonment of reliance on Russian fossil fuels, including increasing imports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and accelerating the adoption of renewable energy.

However, the path to complete elimination will take years, so countries are also planning measures to mitigate potential supply disruptions from Russia, which supplies 40% of the EU’s gas, 27% of oil imports, and 46% of coal imports.

– Filling gas storage across the Union should start immediately. Member states and the European Commission will urgently coordinate the necessary measures to ensure an adequate level of gas storage before next winter –  states the draft conclusions for the EU leaders’ summit from March 24 to 25, which Euractiv has obtained.

The European Commission will, as learned, propose rules by next month requiring EU countries to jointly ensure at least 90% filling of gas storage by October 1 each year.

The current average filling of gas storage in the EU is 26%.

As high energy prices increase bills for citizens across Europe, EU leaders will also discuss new measures to alleviate costs for consumers and businesses.

European gas prices have surged to record levels since the start of the Russian invasion, and the price spike followed months of already high energy costs that most EU countries are trying to address with emergency subsidies and tax relief.

The European Commission will announce a detailed plan to phase out Russian gas, oil and coal by 2027 in May. The initial plan, announced last week, includes a significant increase in LNG imports and a tripling of wind and solar energy capacity in the EU by 2030.

However, while EU countries have rallied behind the goal of abandoning Russian fossil fuels, they are divided on whether to abandon Russian oil and gas.

Germany and Hungary are among the countries opposing this, emphasizing that it would cause economic damage. Supporters, such as Poland and Latvia, argue that the hundreds of millions of euros that Europe sends to Russia for energy supplies are funding the war.

The United States, which relies less on Russian fuels, banned their imports last week.