Source: European Parliament
One of the Commission’s primary energy policy objective is to successfully implement the RepowerEU plan[1], which entails phasing out Russian energy imports to the EU. The expiry of the gas transit agreement between Russia and Ukraine end of 2024 resulted in the reduction of Russian gas imports to the EU by approximately 15 billion cubic meters per year. To ensure security of supply, the Commission has prepared for months, together with Member States, in anticipation of the end of transit via Ukraine, focusing on securing alternative routes and supplies. Notably, the Commission identified and incentivised Member States to utilise four diversification routes[2] with sufficient capacity, via Germany, Italy, Poland, and Greece. By doing so, the Commission effectively facilitated the EU’s transition towards a more diversified and resilient energy landscape, acting first and foremost in the interest of Member States with fewer supply alternatives.
The Commission did not intervene in Ukraine’s sovereign decision not to renew its transit agreement with Russia, neither did it intervene in the redirection of volumes via the Turkstream. The end of transit has caused Russia to lose approximatively USD 6.5 billion[3] per year, when the loss of revenues from the transit is estimated at USD 450 million for Ukraine per year.
- [1] https://commission.europa.eu/strategy-and-policy/priorities-2019-2024/european-green-deal/repowereu-affordable-secure-and-sustainable-energy-europe_en.
- [2] https://energy.ec.europa.eu/document/download/e8a46964-f29b-44f8-9410-689f9e34463b_en.
- [3] ‘Breaking the link: The cost of shutting down Europe’s last Russian gas pipeline’, 13 January 2025, Stockholm School of Economics.