Brussels (Brussels Morning) – Belgium’s reliance on Russian LNG rises amid energy challenges; EU grapples with supply dynamics and sanctions amid shifting consumption patterns post-Ukraine invasion crisis.
Of Belgium’s gas total consumption last year, 7.6 per cent came from Russia, based on the Belgian Energy Data Overview issued by the FPS Economy. This represents an expansion of 2 per cent compared to 2022, according to the news. While Russia closed down its pipelines to Europe soon after the attack, it has been sending more and more LNG by vessel to European ports to take advantage of the growing energy prices.
What challenges does Belgium face with Russian LNG?
Belgium’s energy minister Tinne Van der Straeten said that long-term transshipment agreements make it challenging to phase out Russian LNG.
“We are certainly also in Belgium confronted with specific agreements that were signed well before the war and it is now still an open point how to address this,” she pointed to a meeting of the EU Parliament’s energy committee in January 2024. “This is something that we cannot take on unilaterally,” she precautioned. However, the data indicate that this particular challenge is restricted to Belgium, which transships about 50 per cent of the Russian LNG it obtains. France is the only other nation that sends some of the LNG onward to third countries.
How crucial is Zeebrugge in Europe’s LNG trade?
The port of Zeebrugge and its transhipment terminal played an essential function in this process. In 2023, more than half of all LNG coming into Zeebrugge came from Russia. In 2015, Terminal proprietor Fluxys marked a €1 billion contract with the Russian business Yamal to tranship its LNG.
How has the Russian LNG supply to Europe changed?
Between 2021 and 2023 suppliers of Russian LNG to Europe grew by 11 percent. Last year European nations imported 19.5 billion cubic meters (bcm) of LNG from the Kremlin; an extra 5.2 bcm were transshipped via Europe’s terminals and exported to non-European states. In total EU countries bought Russian LNG valued more than $30bn since the start of the full-scale war in February 2022. Over that time frame, Russia was described as the second-largest supplier of LNG to the EU, behind only the USA and ahead of Qatar and Algeria.
What are the implications of EU sanctions on Russian gas?
Despite apprehensions about supply issues, the European Commission raised the first sanctions on Russian gas in June. Transhipment to non-European nations is no longer allowed. However, the sanctions do not concern Europe’s use of Russian LNG, as Russian ships are still allowed to offload LNG to supply European customers. The concept behind the sanctions is that Russian vessels will have to go further afield to unpack their LNG. But Russian energy suppliers could also choose to unload more LNG in Europe instead, threatening the EU’s ambition to be liberated of Russian fossil fuels by 2027.
The report also states that Belgium’s overall energy consumption is at its most inferior level since 1995. This is also related to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and more particularly the energy crisis that followed. “The crisis led to a shift in consumption patterns, mainly for natural gas, electricity and petroleum products, among businesses and households,” says the FPS.
