Boris Johnson calls Putin a 'blood stained aggressor'
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European utilities are reportedly set to purchase more natural gas from Russia’s state-owned giant, Gazprom, that will come through pipelines which flow through Ukraine. It comes after Russia launched a “full-scale invasion” on its neighbour, which is a key transit route Russian gas passes through to reach the rest of Europe.
The invasion has reportedly killed up to 137 people so far, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who has been furious at the lack of intervention from NATO.
Gas prices have now soared by up to 62 percent according to some reports, which came after Mr Putin vowed to demilitarize Ukraine.
Mr Putin sparked fears that he would cut the EU’s gas, 40 percent of which comes from Russia, amid the Ukraine tensions in response to harsh sanctions slapped down by the West.
The Russian President already laid bare his tight grip on energy when he slashed the volumes of gas travelling through his vast network of pipelines.
Since December, gas flowing through the Yamal-Europe pipeline has been diverted to the East, sending prices skyrocketing to record highs.
And as a third of the gas which Russia sends to Europe travels through Ukraine, the conflict has sparked concerns that even more gas could be cut.
But now, it appears that instead, the EU has taken to purchase gas off Russia, but at a high price.
Javier Blas, Energy and Commodities columnist at Bloomberg, wrote on Twitter: “European utilities are set to buy tomorrow more Russian natural gas (from Gazprom) via Ukraine pipelines. Yes, you read that right: Europe will be buying more natural gas. From Russia. Via Ukraine. Tomorrow.
“That’s capitalism in times of war.”
It comes after Gazprom stressed yesterday that shipments to Europe via Ukraine were still normal.
But analysts from UBS Group AG warned: “In the extreme risk case, which we would define as one that has a lasting and material negative impact on global growth, the conflict could escalate to a level that pushes Western nations to accept a disruption of Russia’s energy flow.”
The bloc had been preparing for the event that more Russian gas would get slashed amid an invasion of Ukraine.
Earlier this month, EU Energy Commissioner Kadri Simson said she was drafting up contingency plans while the bloc grappled with an energy crisis.
Ms Simson said: “It is important that all member states work on preparedness and review contingency plans to ensure they are fit for purpose.
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“We think that the available gas stocks in the EU and our good network of LNG terminals will protect us against major security of supply problems.”
But as of February 17, underground gas storage facilities (UGS) in Europe were 95.3 percent empty, according to Gazprom.
Europe now has only 4.7 percent left of its gas reserves to survive on for the remainder of the winter.
The EU claimed this week that it had enough supplies to last several more weeks if Russia cuts the gas amid the Ukraine conflict.
Instead, it appears the bloc has had to purchase Russia’s gas expensive gas after its reserves plummeted to low levels.
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