Fact Box: What are Europe’s options in the event of a Russian gas outage?

April 26 (Reuters) – Russian energy giant Gazprom (GAZP.MM) told Poland’s PGNiG it will halt gas supplies along the Yamal pipeline from Wednesday morning, renewing supply concerns as Russia and the West remain at loggerheads over Moscow’s demand that gas payments be paid. made in rubles. read more

Poland, whose gas deal with Russia expires at the end of this year, has repeatedly said it would not comply with Moscow’s plan that would require opening an account with Gazprombank and converting hard-currency gas payments into rubles. He has also said he would not extend the contract.

Russia is ready for the possibility that Europe will stop buying Russian energy supplies, the TASS news agency quoted the speaker of the upper house of the Russian parliament as saying.

Europe relies on Russia for about 40% of its natural gas, most of which is transported by pipeline. Total Russian supplies to Europe last year were around 155 billion cubic meters (bcm), of which 52 bcm passed through Ukraine or nearby routes.

Alternative routes include Yamal-Europe, which runs through Belarus and Poland to Germany, and Nord Stream 1, which runs under the Baltic Sea to Germany.

Most European countries have reduced their dependence on Russian gas in recent years. In 2021, the Ukraine transit corridor was mainly used for gas going to Slovakia and then to Austria and Italy.

US President Joe Biden has imposed a ban on imports of Russian oil and other energy, and Britain said it would phase out imports until the end of 2022. read more

The EU has said it wants to cut Russian gas by two-thirds this year and end its dependence on Russian supplies “well before 2030”. read more

Some countries have alternative supply options and Europe’s gas network is connected so supplies can be shared, although the global gas market was tight even before the Ukraine crisis.

Germany, Europe’s biggest consumer of Russian gas that halted certification of Russia’s new Nord Stream 2 pipeline due to the Ukraine crisis, could import gas from Britain, Denmark, Norway and the Netherlands via pipelines.

Germany’s public services association, BDEW, has called for a government emergency plan to prepare the country for interruptions in Russian gas supplies.

Norway’s Equinor (EQNR.OL) said it is considering ways to produce more gas from its Norwegian fields during Europe’s upcoming summer, a season when output is normally affected by maintenance. read more

Southern Europe can receive Azeri gas through the Trans Adriatic Pipeline to Italy and the Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP) through Turkey.

The United States will work to supply 15 billion cubic meters of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to the European Union this year, transatlantic partners said last week. read more

Senior US administration officials did not specify what amount or percentage of the additional LNG supply would come from the United States.

US LNG plants are producing at full capacity and analysts say most of any additional US gas sent to Europe would be exports redirected from elsewhere.

Europe’s LNG terminals also have limited capacity for additional imports, though some European countries say they are looking at ways to expand imports and storage.

Poland’s contract with Gazprom is for 10.2 billion cubic meters per year and covers around 50% of national consumption. read more

PGNiG said on Tuesday that it would take steps to restore the flow of gas in accordance with the Yamal contract and that any supply interruption was a breach of that contract and it would be entitled to claim damages in such an event.

Various nations could try to fill any gaps in energy supply by resorting to electricity imports through interconnectors from their neighbors or by boosting nuclear, renewable, hydroelectric or coal power generation.

The European Commission said gas and LNG from countries including the United States and Qatar could replace 60 billion cubic meters (bcm) of Russian supplies this year. By 2030, increased use of biomethane and hydrogen could also help. read more

New wind and solar projects could replace 20 bcm of gas demand this year, while tripling capacity by 2030, adding 480 GW of wind power and 420 GW of solar power, could save 170 bcm a year.

Lowering thermostats by 1°C could save an additional 10 bcm this year, while by 2030 replacing gas boilers with 30 million heat pumps could save 35 bcm, the Commission added.

Nuclear availability is declining in Belgium, Britain, France and Germany as plants face disruption as they age or are closed or phased out.

Europe has been trying to move away from coal to meet climate goals, but some coal plants have been coming back on since mid-2021 due to rising gas prices. read more

Germany has said it could extend the life of coal or nuclear plants to reduce reliance on Russian gas. read more

In previous crises, countries have also tried to cut industrial output at certain times, pay backup generators to turn on supply, order households to reduce energy use or impose temporary power cuts.

If Germany doesn’t get enough gas, the country’s industry, which accounts for a quarter of Germany’s gas consumption, would be hit first, analysts said.

The last 15 years have seen several disputes between Russia and Ukraine over gas, mainly over prices.

In 2006, Gazprom cut off supplies to Ukraine for one day. In the winter of 2008/2009, Russian supply disruptions spread throughout Europe. Russia cut off supplies to kyiv in 2014 after Moscow annexed Crimea.

Ukraine stopped buying Russian gas in November 2015 and has instead imported gas from EU countries, reversing the flow in some of its pipelines.

Information from Nina Chestney; Additional reporting by Marwa Rashad; Edited by David Evans and Tomasz Janowski

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