Putin admits Russia faces gas shortage amid Ukraine's strikes on energy infrastructure
Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Russia is facing a gas shortage, The Moscow Times reported on Sept. 4.
The statement comes after a months-long Ukrainian campaign targeting Russia's energy infrastructure in an attempt to put economic pressure on Russia and undermine its ability to finance its war against Ukraine.
Speaking at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok on Sept. 4, Putin said that signs of gas shortages are already visible in the Russian Far East. He said that supplying new enterprises can be challenging, and demand for gas is expected to rise significantly in the Far Eastern Federal District in the coming years.
He didn't mention the reasons behind a potential shortage.
Putin suggested switching to coal reserves, which "will last for almost a thousand years," Putin said, as quoted by The Moscow Times.
According to the Russian Ministry of Energy, the Kremlin has 63.4 trillion cubic meters of gas reserves, enough for 100 years of production. In 2020, the Accounts Chamber of Russia estimated that the country's reserves made up 20% of the world's total but warned that they would only last 50 years.
Ukraine has targeted dozens of refineries, oil depots, and military-industrial sites with long-range drones since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022 to disrupt Moscow's war effort.
Kyiv has increased the attacks recently ahead of potential peace talks following U.S. President Donald Trump's meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Aug. 15 and with President Volodymyr Zelensky in Washington on Aug. 18.
The attacks have disrupted Russia’s ability to process and export oil and created gasoline shortages in some Russian regions, as well as in occupied Crimea.
