Europe seeks an alternative: from Russian gas to US LNG

Europe is at a crossroads between diversifying gas supplies to replace Russian imports and transitioning to renewable energy. In the meantime, however, the Old Continent must find a way to secure sufficient natural gas supplies and strengthen its energy security.

According to the EU’s top energy official, Ditte Juul Jørgensen, Europe currently has enough resources to weather another winter energy crisis. She added, however, that Europe’s dependence on US liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports will continue.

"For the next several decades, we will need some fossil molecules in the system. And in this context, US energy will be needed," Jørgensen told the Financial Times in an interview.

Such a statement simply confirms that EU countries will be consuming US LNG long after the end of the decade, despite concerns expressed by some politicians and environmental activists that doing so could undermine the bloc’s ambitious climate goals.

Among the consequences of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year was a pact with the Biden administration to secure imports of an additional 50 billion cubic metres a year at least until 2030. The agreement was reached in line with the EU’s and US’s climate goals, and both sides agreed to fully respect their targets for reducing gas demand.