Cutting out Russian energy from the EU by 2027 is an unattainable goal ; Russia still remains one of the continent's key energy suppliers. This opinion was expressed by ag. Bloomberg.
According to him, despite Western sanctions, Russia remains “one of the most important suppliers” of goods. energy supplies to Europe. As the agency points out, citing data from the Bruegel think tank, imports of Russian fossil fuels into the EU at the end of 2023 amounted to about 1 billion USD per month.
Natural gas accounts for the majority of imports, Bloomberg notes. Russia still accounts for 15% of total EU gas imports in 2023, according to the European Commission. Most of this gas comes via pipelines through Ukraine and Turkey.
As the agency emphasizes, Russia's European clients are often bound by strict long-term contracts that are not easy to cancel. Switching to new supplies can also be expensive.