For the peace plan in Ukraine, Europe thinks of reopening Russian gas pipelines

For the peace plan in Ukraine, Europe thinks of reopening Russian gas pipelines

The European Union would be evaluating the hypothesis of asking Ukraine to reopen Russian gas pipelines, within a peace plan to be proposed to Vladimir Putin. This was stated by the Financial Times, which cites sources close to interviews. Three officials would report that the idea was supported by some representatives of Germany and Hungary, with the support of other capital that see the idea as a way to reduce European energy costs.

“Some large Member States are pressing on energy prices, and this is obviously a solution to reduce them,” said an official. The only proposal to resume gas sales from Russia has infuriated Brussels and diplomatic officials from some Eastern European countries, many of whom have worked in the last three years to reduce EU dependence on Russian energy. “It is madness. How stupid should we even take this option into consideration?” Said one of the officials to the British newspaper.

The reduction of flows

In 2024, the gas transported via Gasdotto by Russia represented about 10 percent of the total EU supply supply, but this fee halved from January, when the contract that allowed the transit of the gas flow through the Ukraine.

The only Russian gas pipeline still operational to supply the EU is Turkstream through Turkey, which provides around 7.5 billion cubic meters of gas. Budapest, together with the government of Slovakia, is making pressure on the EU to convince Ukraine to reactivate the transit of gas. “In the end, everyone wants lower energy costs,” said a high EU official.

Slovakia, directly connected to the Ukrainian gas pipeline that interrupted Russian gas supplies, is faced with an annual loss of 500 million euros in transit revenues. Gary Mazzotti, CEO of EP Infrastructure, who manages the Slovak part of the gas pipeline, told the FT that a potential peace agreement between Donald Trump and Russia would almost certainly lead to interviews on the resumption of Russian gas supplies.

“When the day of peace arrives, I am sure that there will be significant discussions on the right levels of gas supply to Europe and their origin,” said Mazzotti.