Spain demands new sanctions against Russian LNG, despite significant imports
15.01.2025 - 14:49
Madrid believes that only a joint decision by the EU countries can reduce dependence on gas from Russia.
Spain is calling on the EU to impose sanctions on Russian LNG, even though the country imports this raw material to a large extent. This is reported by Gospodarka Morska.
In 2024, the share of Russian LNG in Spain’s imports was 21.3%, second only to Algeria (38.5%), but exceeding the volume of supplies from the United States (16.6%).
Spain remains the largest importer of LNG in the EU thanks to the largest number of regasification terminals. Part of the supplies are based on long-term contracts with “take or pay” clauses, while the rest is formed by the redirection of tankers by traders, explains Ignacio Urbasos, an expert at the Royal Institute Elcano.
The expert emphasizes that the large unused regasification capacity in Spain and competitive tariffs make the country a key player in the European energy sector.
Despite this, the government in Madrid has repeatedly opposed gas imports from Russia and called on the EU to diversify supplies. Spain emphasizes that sanctions on LNG can only be effective if the EU countries are unanimous.
At the same time, it is noted that Spain, in accordance with the REPowerEU plan, has committed to stop importing gas from Russia by 2027.
The day before, USM wrote that the EU is preparing the 16th package of sanctions against Russia. The restrictions will probably be directed at aluminum, LNG and the so-called shadow fleet.
