Deliveries of Russian liquefied natural gas to Europe increased last year - to 22 bcm, up from around 16 bcm in 2021, according to an EU analysis seen by Reuters.
If approved, the proposal would offer member states a route to stop LNG imports from Russia without having to resort to sanctions - which are politically harder to greenlight because they need unanimous approval from all 27 EU member states. Hungary said it could not support the EU countries' negotiating position on the law, which also includes a raft of new rules to integrate more low-carbon gases.
Countries would be able to impose the limit on Russian firms for a temporary period, so long as it does not disrupt gas flows between EU countries or endanger Europe's energy security, the document said.
EU Energy Commissioner Kadri Simson this month urged
European companies not to sign new Russian LNG deals once their
existing contracts expire. Spanish Energy Minister Teresa Ribera
made the same request to LNG importers and operators in Spain.
However, such requests are not binding, since Russian gas
and LNG are not subject to EU sanctions. The EU does have a ban
on seaborne crude oil and oil products imports from Russia.
(Reporting by Kate Abnett, editing by Marine Strauss, Alexandra
Hudson)
