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EU Parliament approves option allowing members to block Russian LNG imports

by Martin Fornusek and The Kyiv Independent news desk April 11, 2024 3:56 PM 1 min read

A photograph shows the Utrenneye field, the resource base for Novatek's Arctic LNG 2 project, located in the Gydan Peninsula on the Kara Sea shore line in the Arctic circle, some 2500 km from Moscow, Russia, on Nov. 30, 2021. (Natalia Kolesnikova/AFP via Getty Images)

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The European Parliament voted on April 11 to pass rules allowing member states to ban imports of Russian liquified natural gas (LNG), Reuters reported.

Despite Brussels' target to be free of Russian fossil fuels by 2027, several EU members remain heavily reliant on Russian gas, and imports of liquified natural gas (LNG) from Russia reached record heights last year.

The new policy aims to create a legal route for blocking gas deliveries by preventing Russian and Belarusian companies from booking gas infrastructure capacity.

This would allow European energy firms to leave contracts with Russian suppliers without paying fees.

This measure is a part of Brussels' strategy to reduce the bloc's energy dependency on Russia amid the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Some countries, such as the U.K., Latvia, and Lithuania, have already stopped buying LNG from Russia unilaterally, while Finland announced in January that it plans to ban Russian LNG from 2025.

Authors: Martin Fornusek, The Kyiv Independent news desk

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EU Parliament approves option allowing members to block Russian LNG imports

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