EU continues importing Russian gas at unprecedented rates despite supply cutoff

Europe is purchasing Russian gas at an all-time high in 2025.

It is spending billions that could bolster the Kremlin's war effort in Ukraine, just weeks after the end of a crucial transit agreement that had sparked hopes of reducing reliance on Moscow, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media. 

Data from commodities intelligence firm Kpler shows that during the first 15 days of 2025, the European Union’s 27 member states imported 837,300 metric tons of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Russia.

This marks a new record, up from 760,100 tons during the same period last year, raising concerns that Western nations are not doing enough to limit Russian funds as Moscow's war continues into its fourth year. These figures follow the expiration of a significant agreement that had allowed Russia to deliver gas to the EU through pipelines running across Ukraine, which ended on January 1.

Kyiv has stated it will not negotiate an extension, which has increased pressure on countries to purchase LNG delivered by tanker from Russian ports. Several countries, including Slovakia and Hungary, were heavily reliant on the Ukrainian transit route and had been advocating for the deal's renewal. They warned that if the agreement ended, they would face higher costs for LNG.

Kremlin-aligned Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico even threatened to cut off electricity supplies to Ukraine and reduce support for refugees if Kyiv did not agree to resume the transit deal. However, the disruption of the Ukrainian transit route has not diminished Europe's overall demand for Russian gas. Charles Costerousse, a senior LNG analyst at Kpler, attributes this to a combination of factors. “There’s been a cold spell since the second half of December; wind power generation hasn’t been at its highest level,” he explained. “So there is an appetite to keep these volumes flowing in.”

He also pointed out that 95 to 96 per cent of the Russian LNG arriving in Europe comes from the Yamal plant, a massive facility located in northern Siberia. “The majority of those volumes are long-term contracts,” Costerousse said. “So it’s not like the EU is buying additional spot cargoes, it’s these contracted volumes coming in.”

Anna-Kaisa Itkonen, a spokesperson for the European Commission, acknowledged that efforts to reduce Moscow’s share of coal, oil, and gas imports have already “broken Russia’s grip on Europe’s energy system.”

"However, despite these significant results, Russian energy — particularly gas — is still present in the EU, and gas imports from Russia have increased in 2024, including LNG imports. This gives rise to serious concerns,” she noted, adding that the Commission is preparing a "roadmap" to eliminate Russian energy imports, which is expected to be released by the end of February. 

In a separate development, 10 EU countries are calling for sanctions on Russian LNG, which has been purchased in large quantities since Moscow began halting pipeline deliveries in an attempt to weaponize fossil fuel flows following its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

By Naila Huseynova