EU Russian LNG Imports Highest Since 2022 Invasion, Up 16% in Q1
EU imports of Russian liquefied natural gas hit their highest Q1 level since the 2022 Ukraine invasion, increasing 16% to 6.9 billion cubic meters. Despite a 2027 phase-out vow, Russia remains the EU’s second-largest LNG supplier. The EU is increasingly reliant on more expensive US LNG, raising concerns about supply security and diversification.
European Union imports of Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) reached their highest level in the first quarter since Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, according to an Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) report published Wednesday.
The EU imported 6.9 billion cubic meters of Russian gas in the first three months of 2024, a 16 percent increase from Q1 last year. This trend continued into April, with imports up 17 percent year-on-year. Russia remains the second-biggest LNG supplier to the bloc, providing about 14 percent of the total, despite the EU’s vow to end all Russian gas and oil imports by the end of 2027.
While Russian pipeline gas shipments to the EU have largely ceased, countries like France, Spain, and Belgium continue to purchase Russian LNG via tankers. The EU has increasingly shifted towards the United States for LNG, with US imports more than tripling between 2021 and 2025, and jumping 27 percent in Q1 alone. The IEEFA projects the US will be the EU’s largest gas supplier by 2026, potentially accounting for 80 percent of its LNG imports by 2028, despite US gas being the most expensive.
Ana Maria Jaller-Makarewicz, IEEFA’s lead energy analyst for Europe, stated that Europe’s shift from pipeline gas to LNG, intended for supply security and diversification, has failed due to Middle East war disruptions and overreliance on US LNG.