Austria: Interruption of Russian gas supplies could pose a “major risk” for the country

Austria’s Energy Ministry has warned that a possible halt to Russian gas supplies poses risks for the country, which is still dependent on natural gas from Russia, the ministry told Bloomberg on August 13.

Despite efforts by European countries to reduce their dependence on Russian gas, Russian supplies continue to account for an important part of the EU’s imports.

Russia will severely restrict its gas transit to Europe via pipelines in 2022, but countries such as Austria, Hungary and Slovakia remain heavily dependent on Russian imports.

The Austrian Energy Ministry stated that as long as there is a dependence on Russian gas supplies, “there is a massive risk of a corresponding supply failure with far-reaching consequences.”

“We must end Austria’s dependence on Russian gas supplies as quickly as possible,” the ministry said.

According to the Austrian government report, the country can replace Russian gas with supplies from Italy and Germany, but if this fails, the capacity of its gas storage facilities will drop to 15 percent by 2026.

Austria’s governing coalition has committed to dispensing with Russian gas imports by 2027 as part of a comprehensive transformation of the country’s energy system. The government is expected to present a detailed roadmap before the national elections on September 29.

A more likely scenario would see Russian supplies end in January 2025, new supplies via Italy to meet rising demand and storage capacity reaching 60 percent in 2027, Bloomberg said.

Although the total volume of gas imported from Russia has decreased, 98% of all gas imports to Austria came from Russia in December 2023, which represents a record share.

In 2018, Austria extended its gas supply contract with Russia until 2040. The Austrian government is currently examining whether an early termination of the agreement with Gazprom is possible.

Bloomberg reports: Ukraine and Russia have no intention of stopping gas supplies to Europe in light of the fighting in Kursk Oblast

Kyiv and Moscow plan to continue supplying gas to Europe despite Ukraine’s incursion into Kursk Oblast, near a key cross-border transit point for the fuel, Bloomberg reported on August 12, citing anonymous sources.