Europe is significantly increasing its purchases of Russian gas in 2025, spending billions of dollars. In the first two weeks of January, EU countries imported a record 837.3 thousand tons of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Russia. The increase in imports comes after the end of the transit agreement allowing Russia to supply gas through Ukraine, which forces EU countries to turn to offshore LNG from Russian ports. Some states, such as Slovakia and Hungary, which depended on the Ukrainian route, warn of the need to buy more expensive LNG. Charles Kosterus, an analyst at Kpler, noted that the cold weather and low wind energy production are contributing to an increase in demand for Russian gas. The main volumes of LNG come from the Yamal plant in Siberia under long-term contracts. The European Commission recognizes that, despite efforts to reduce dependence on Russian energy, gas imports from Russia continue to grow. Ten EU countries are calling for sanctions against Russian LNG, while European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has proposed increasing purchases of American LNG as an alternative.
