OSW Commentary - Dangerous liaisons. A quick and coordinate withdrawal from Russian gas is proving hard for the EU

The issues related to the gas storage legislation are the single exception here – this means the obligation to have full storage capacity before the heating season and other amendments to the regulation on the security of gas supply and the regulation on conditions for access to the EU’s gas pipeline networks.2 Apart from that there has thus far been no significant interest in the platform for joi. [...] Russian counter-sanctions a problem for the EU At the end of May, in part due to the deadlines for the payment for Russian gas, concerns increased about the immediate future of gas supplies to the EU. [...] This reduces the number of export routes from Russia to the EU, which limits the technical possibili- ties of increasing imports in the event of sudden surges in demand (in the wintertime, for example), and this causes a decrease in the security of supply in the EU. [...] The abandonment of the Yamal gas pipeline use, in the context of the permanent risk to the sta- bility of supplies through Ukraine, increases the significance of the Russian routes Nord Stream 1 and TurkStream, and creates the opportunity for Russia to push for the launch of Nord Stream 2. [...] The implementation of joint purchases of Russian gas within the framework of the energy platform could help here, as could the coordination of decisions concerning the pace of transition from Russian imports and the development of specific objectives and incentives.