Gazprom gas exports to EU down 9% from 2013
December 22, 2014, 11:40 am

At loggerheads with Moscow over Ukraine, Europe is trying to reduce its energy dependence on Russia [AP]

At loggerheads with Moscow over Ukraine, Europe is trying to reduce its energy dependence on Russia.

“We are most likely to sell 147 [billion cubic meters of gas] this year,” Medvedev said.

More than a quarter of the EU’s total gas needs were met by Russian gas, and some 80 per cent of it came via Ukrainian pipelines. Six EU countries depend on Russia for 100 per cent of their gas imports.

Russian President Vladimir Putin warned the EU “there is no cheaper and more reliable supplier than Russia, and there won’t be any in the near future”, in an annual press conference in Moscow last week.

“Will a so-called European hub be built on the border of Turkey and Greece? This is not for us to decide. The decision largely depends on our European partners: Do they want stable, guaranteed and absolutely transparent energy supply from Russia, which they badly need, without any transit risks?” said Putin.

Earlier this month, Russia scrapped the South Stream pipeline project to supply gas to southern Europe without crossing Ukraine, citing EU objections.

State-owned Gazprom sold 161.5 billion cubic meters of gas to European consumers last year.

The Russian ruble has lost nearly 50 per cent of its value against the US dollar and euro since March.

Since the beginning of this year, the central bank of Russia has hiked the key interest rate by 6.5 percentage points to 17 per cent.

During a year-end press conference last week, President Vladimir Putin praised the efforts by the central bank and the government to stabilize the ruble and noted that it would take at most two years for the Russian economy to rebound under the most unfavorable scenario.

TBP and Agencies