Gas, what changes after the EU-Azerbaijan agreement?
Ursula von der Leyen and Kadri Simson have signed an agreement in Baku that will guarantee the doubling of gas imports from Azerbaijan
The European week started with a bang. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Energy Commissioner Kadri Simson flew to Baku. Aim of the visit: to conclude an Azerbaijani gas agreement for the European Union.
THE CONTEXT
At the base there is obviously the energy issue at stake with Russia. These have been weeks of war but also of blackmail on Moscow's supplies. Earlier this month, to cite one of the passages , von der Leyen sounded an alarm about the risk of a complete disruption of Russian gas supplies and announced preparations by the EU to address this possibility.
"Now we must also prepare for further interruptions in gas supplies and even a complete interruption of Russian gas supplies," he told the European Parliament in session in Strasbourg, adding that "the Commission is working on a European emergency plan". The plan will be presented tomorrow and will concern reductions in the purchase and consumption of gas, while also keeping in the background the issue of the price cap so dear to Italy.
“A dozen member countries have already been hit by reductions or complete cuts in gas supplies from Russia. The important thing now is to ensure that the gas gets to where it is most needed in the event of a total outage, ”concluded von der Leyen two weeks ago. The situation hasn't changed that much.
THE LATEST BLACKMAIL OF GAZPROM
Yesterday, in fact, Reuters released a Gazprom document dated June 14 where it initiates the state of force majeure for some supplies to the Old Continent . At stake is the issue of the Nord Stream 1 put into maintenance from 11 to 21 July. But in the meantime, Berlin got a Siemens turbine back from Canada, where it was to be placed. If there are no logistical or customs problems, it will take another five to seven days for the turbine to arrive in Russia, Bild wrote yesterday. In this way, Moscow will inevitably have to stop making the excuse of maintenance, thus reactivating supplies via Nord Stream 1. But the Bear, even in the energy field, can never be trusted.
VON DER LEYEN IN AZERBAIJAN: HERE IS THE DOUBLING OF THE GAS THAT THE EU NEEDS
Meanwhile, the EU continues to move towards establishing new partnerships. Or at least try to intensify those that already exist. As in the Azerbaijani case. Yesterday in Baku, in fact, the signing of an agreement that will bring supplies in the EU to 12 billion cubic meters per year from 2023. But already now supplies will enjoy a substantial increase: "4 billion cubic meters of additional gas this year and volumes that should more than double by 2027 ”, said the European Commissioner for Energy, Kadri Simson.
The agreement also provides for the expansion of the southern gas corridor that crosses Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey and Greece – to provide "at least 20 billion cubic meters of gas
per year by 2027, in accordance with commercial profitability and market demand ”, Euractiv reports. Last year, to understand, Azerbaijan sent 8.1 billion cubic meters of natural gas to Europe.
THE IMPORTANCE OF THE SOUTHERN CORRIDOR
In short, excellent news in the midst of a problematic context. Indeed, the Southern Gas Corridor has a central role to play in the EU's natural gas supply, particularly for South Eastern Europe.
The EU and Azerbaijan are also working together to build a long-term partnership on clean energy and energy efficiency, as both sides pursue their green transition and Paris Agreement goals.
And more broadly, they are negotiating a new global agreement, which will allow for enhanced cooperation in a wide range of areas, including economic diversification, investment, trade and the full use of the potential of civil society.
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/energia/gas-cosa-cambia-dopo-laccordo-ue-azerbaigian/ on Tue, 19 Jul 2022 10:28:38 +0000.