A major gas deal within reach: “the United States will supply Europe with 15 billion cubic meters this year”

According to sources against the Financial Times, the Americans are presenting the final details of this plan in Brussels.

Europe consumes more than 400 billion cubic meters of gas per year and imports 350 billion, 45% of which from Russia. Europe wants to cut its dependence on Russian gas by two-thirds this year and then phase it out altogether. In total, 50 billion m3 of gas will then be replaced.

US President Joe Biden and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen were due to announce the deal on Friday morning. For comparison: the Dutch offshore gas fields could supply 6 billion cubic meters of gas in the short term. This is roughly the amount the Netherlands currently buys from Russia.

European member states do not dare phase out Russian gas too quickly. Eastern European countries in particular would be hit hard. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has warned of an immediate ban on all fossil fuels which would spell recession for Europe’s biggest economy.

Germany is therefore sticking to a sharp reduction in gas for this year, within the framework of the sanctions.

In addition to consultations on LNG supply from the United States, Europe is also consulting with representatives in Qatar and Egypt.

The agreement with the Americans is remarkable: a large part of the export of LNG to the United States is already reserved, in particular for countries in Asia.