Ministers and executives say that if sanctions are eased, Europe will avoid Russian energy.
Ministers and executives at a Houston conference said that European buyers will not return to Russia's Energy Sector if the sanctions are lifted. The bloc has diversified its power mix by using renewable energy and alternative suppliers of gas.
According to a joint U.S. and Ukrainian statement released on Tuesday, Ukraine agreed to accept the U.S. proposal of an immediate 30-day truce in order to restore a lasting peace following Russia's invasion.
Last week, it was reported that the U.S. Government is looking at ways to ease sanctions against Russia's energy industry as part of a broader plan that would allow Washington to provide swift relief in case Moscow agreed to end its war with Ukraine.
"Do we want to depend on an aggressor such as Russia for our energy? "Obviously not", European Union (EU), Energy Commissioner Dan Jorgensen stated during a discussion panel at the conference.
Jorgensen said that the bloc receives only 13% of its gas from Russia. This is down from 45% of their natural gas in February 2022. The reason for this rapid deployment of renewable energies, Jorgensen explained, was due to the rapid deployment of renewables.
Last month, the European Commission presented an Action Plan that will accelerate permits for renewable energy, change energy tariffs, and increase aid to clean industries and flexible power generation.
Jorgensen, announcing the plan, said: "We need to be independent from fossil fuels, particularly those coming from Russia and other countries."
According to Ember, a think-tank for energy, solar generation will account for 11% of EU electricity in 2024, compared with 9.3% in 2023. Solar power will overtake coal. According to January data, coal-fired generation has fallen to less than 10% since Ember began compiling these figures in 2011.
According to Ember, the share of gas-fired electricity production dropped to 15.7% in 2023 from 16.9%.
Fatih Birol (Executive Director of the Paris-based International Energy Agency) said, "My magic words in energy security are diversification" on the CERAWeek Panel alongside Jorgensen.
NEW MARKETS
The new markets that emerged after the Russian invasion of Ukraine will likely remain.
Holger Losch said, "We've managed to switch from Russian gas to another gas supplier," in an interview.
Losch said, "I believe the truth is that Europe will probably try to diversify their gas supply in the future."
Ship tracking data revealed that Venture Global Inc.'s Plaquemines LNG Export Plant in Louisiana exported over half a milllion tonnes of LNG to Europe.
Losch says that Europe has many other options, in addition to U.S. LNG. These include gas from the Middle East and North Africa, as well as Azerbaijan.
"I don’t think Europe will ever go back to buying large amounts of energy from Russia. In an interview given at the conference, Toby Rice said that he thought it was a good lesson.
Other executives have warned that market participants might be less willing to stay away from Russian energy if the price of energy is cheaper.
Why would we do ourselves harm by having the highest costs of energy? Torbjorn Tornqvist, CEO of Gunvor, one of the largest oil traders in the world, said this during an interview. Reporting by Georgina Mccartney, Arathy Sommesekhar and Jarrett Renshaw from Houston; editing by Liz Hampton and David Gregorio
(source: Reuters)
