Gas from Russia may stop flowing, IEA chief warns
11:20
Russia may completely cut off Europe from its gas, and the European Union must be prepared for such a scenario, as assesses the head of the International Energy Agency (IEA) Fatih Birol.
According to Birol, cutting off gas from Russia may be a tool used by the Kremlin to exert political pressure on the West in connection with the war in Ukraine.
"I wouldn't rule out that Russia will continue to find different pretexts, whether here or there, and continue to find excuses for further reductions in gas supplies to Europe, and maybe even cut them off completely," Fatih Birol said, as quoted by Reuters.
In his opinion, "Europe needs contingency plans" in case Russia really goes for large-scale gas blackmail. The IEA chief believes that Gazprom's recent decisions to cut off and reduce supplies to individual countries may be an attempt to increase political pressure before the winter season when energy demand is higher.
"Poland is prepared for a shortage of gas from Russia thanks to the use of LNG terminals and the planned launch of the Baltic Pipe pipeline in the autumn. Polish storage facilities are currently 97 percent full, which covers the demand for 2 months in the absence of any gas supplies." Magdalena Maj, head of PIE's climate and energy team, said.
