France leads Europe in growing Russian LNG imports
France is the main recipient of liquefied natural gas (LNG) imported from Russia in Europe, AFP reported, citing data from the think tank IEEFA. The data indicates that from 2023 to 2024, imports of Russian raw material to France increased by 81% and cost €2.68 billion.
France's well-developed port infrastructure facilitates the import of liquefied natural gas (LNG). Ana Maria Jaller-Makarewicz, an analyst at the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA), explained that the LNG is then regasified, allowing it to be transported through pipelines.
Jaller-Makarewicz noted that the exact destination of the LNG remains uncertain, but it may be exported to Germany, which lacked port terminals for LNG imports until 2022. She also pointed out that Germany imports only half as much of this resource as France.
Last year, the terminal in Dunkirk received 27% of LNG imports from Russia. AFP noted that 85% of the imports of this raw material into Europe pass through ports in France, Spain, and Belgium.
Due to Russian aggression in Ukraine, European Union countries have shifted to importing LNG to reduce dependence on pipeline gas imports directly from Russia. Nevertheless, AFP noted that a large portion of these imports still comes from Russia, making the European Commission's goal of phasing out Russian gas by 2027 increasingly difficult to achieve.
The agency also pointed out that the industry is preparing to increase LNG imports, and new terminals for receiving this raw material are being built in many EU countries, including Germany.
Officials in Brussels are considering resuming purchases of Russian gas by the EU, reports the "Financial Times," citing sources familiar with EU discussions. This could occur under a potential agreement that ends Russia's war against Ukraine.
