Ukraine: Europe shamed over Russia gas sanctions delay
We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you’ve consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. More info
The news comes as global reliance on fossil fuels continues as industries emerge from the effects of the global Covid pandemic. With Russia being a major energy supplier to the EU, the figures although lower than in previous years comes as no surprise.
According to the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), the EU was the recipient of over 60 percent of Russian fuel exports.
Russia has taken advantage of the need for global energy through the sales of oil and gas, contributing to the funding of its ongoing war in Ukraine
In spite of global efforts to apply punitive sanctions against Moscow, the EU has been reluctant to completely halt Russian energy supplies, although the quantity has reduced since the start of the war.
CREA’s lead analyst Lauri Myllyvirta said of the current international sanctions against Moscow: “The progress to date is far too slow given Ukraine’s urgent need for support.
“Much stronger action is needed to cut off the flow of cash to Russia.
“Globally, we need to speed up the deployment of clean energy to replace fossil fuel imports and ease the high fuel prices which are driving up Russia’s revenues.”
The EU has pledged to further reduce the reliance on Russian energy by the end of the year.
Alternative sources of gas have been proposed, with both Iran and Qatar both offering to supply Europe.
However, neither country has an established logistical infrastructure to the EU, making the supply both costly, and lagging behind already installed Russian pipelines.
The United States has also offered to supply LNG to Europe, with ships transporting quantities over to Britain and the EU.
According to CREA’s research, India, France, China, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia all increased imports in recent times.
India has purchased around 18 percent of Russia’s crude oil exports, with France the largest buyer of discounted liquid natural gas and oil, continuing imports on the short-term market.
Mr Myllyvirta said: “The exports of Russian oil to new markets are being enabled by Greek and other European shipping companies.
“As Russian oil is shipped to more distant markets, more tanker capacity than ever before is needed for the transport.
“80 percent of the tankers carrying Russian oil to India and the Middle East, for example, are European or US-owned.
“This should be the next focus of EU action.”
DON’T MISS:
Russia forced to use Cold War-era missiles [REPORT]
China issues nuclear threat after furious bust-up with US [INSIGHT]
Macron’s EU Army pipedream torn apart [EXCLUSIVE]
The data was calculated by CREA by tracking cargo ships, shipping data, gas pipeline flows, and by estimating the value of imports using its own pricing models.
According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), Russia relies heavily on revenues from oil and natural gas, which in 2021 made up 45 percent of Russia’s federal budget.
In 2021, Russian crude and condensate output reached 10.5 million barrels per day (bpd), making up 14 percent of the world’s total supply.
Russia has oil and gas production facilities throughout the country, but the bulk of its fields are concentrated in western and eastern Siberia.
For more stories like this, follow Express.co.uk Defence and Security Correspondent James Lee on Twitter: @JamesLee_DE
In 2021 Russia exported an estimated 4.7 million bpd of crude, to countries around the world.
China is the largest importer of Russian crude (1.6 million bpd), but Russia exports a significant volume to buyers in Europe (2.4 million bpd).
Russia currently enjoys the world’s largest proven reserves of gas, with 24.3 percent of total global reserves.
Moscow also has 107billion barrels of proven oil reserves, making it the 6th largest in the world.
Source: Read Full Article
