The European Commission asks countries like Spain to apply “without delay” the mechanism that allows restricting requests for network access capacity and liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals for natural gas and LNG from Russia and Belarus .
This is stated by the Energy Commissioner, Kadri Simson, in a written response to PP MEP Juan Ignacio Zoido, where this deputy denounces that Spain has become the European country that imports the most LNG from Russia.
In this regard, Zoido recalls that the arrival of Russian gas to Spanish ports has broken a record after growing by 30% in 2023 and have been on the rise for two consecutive years due to what he considers “the passivity of the Government of Spain.”
In his response, Simson indicates that the package of measures on the hydrogen and decarbonized gases markets, approved by the co-legislators in May 2024, introduces this mechanism that allows Member States to restrict already ex ante requests for network access capacity and LNG terminals for Russian gas.
Simson further explains that the Commission is closely monitoring gas imports from Russia by Member States, including Spain.
Furthermore, he appreciates that Russian supply accounted for 15% of EU imports in 2023, while it was around 50% before Russia’s large-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Therefore, it maintains that “the EU is on track to meet the objective of eliminating the EU’s dependence on Russian fossil fuels by 2027” and that “Member States continue their efforts to phase out the remaining supplies from Russia “.
In addition, calls on Member States and companies to stop buying Russian LNG and not to sign new LNG contracts with Russian companies once existing contracts have expired.
Finally, he recalls that to date, Russian LNG has not been subject to sanctions, which means that companies are not prohibited from purchasing it but points out that the Commission’s latest proposal for the 14th sanctions package includes, among other things , restrictions on the transshipment of Russian LNG in European ports. However, this proposed package still requires unanimous Council adoption.
Natural gas arriving from Russia in April reached 5,342 gigawatt hours (GWh), experiencing a decrease of 18% compared to the same month in 2023 which kept it as the second country with the most sales to Spain despite the restrictions imposed after the invasion of Ukraine.
According to statistics from the Strategic Reserves of Petroleum Products Corporation (Cores), the share of Russian gas in total Spanish imports rose to 20% that month, compared to 18.3% in 2023 as a whole.
In this way, Russia became the second largest gas supplier in April. Spain is only behind Algeria and surpassing Nigeria and the United States.
Likewise, in the first quarter, gas imported from Russia to Spain reached 26,854 GWh, experiencing an increase of 12.8% in the period. Thus, Putin’s country was also the second largest supplier in those months, being only behind Algeria.
Last year, Russian gas imports reached 72,690 GWh, experiencing an increase of 29.8% compared to 2022, after rising 54.8% the year the war conflict in Ukraine began. In fact, in the final months of 2022, Russia overtook Nigeria and consolidated its position in third place.
