At the end of 2022, Russia became the second largest supplier of natural gas to France after the United States, and in the period from January to September 2023, French LNG purchases from Russia were 41% higher than in 2022, TF1 reports. According to the publication, despite the sanctions, there is simply no substitute for Russian gas in France.
Russian media recently reported a report from the country’s Foreign Ministry that Russia became the second largest supplier of natural gas to France after the United States at the end of 2022, and that between January and September 2023, French LNG purchases from Russia were 41% higher than purchases during the same period in 2022, TF1 reports.
According to the TV channel, the French Ministry of Economy has not yet commented or confirmed this information. Nevertheless, the data presented in the Russian press is not new, as the French media stated the same thing a few months ago. A 41% increase in Russian LNG purchases was mentioned by the French Institute of Economics, Energy and Financial Analysis in a report published on 31 October 2023.
This data echoes similar observations published earlier in 2023 by Kpler. In addition, the continued purchase of liquefied natural gas from Russia has been heavily criticised by non-governmental organisations, Le Monde newspaper noted last year.
While EU countries have pledged to cut oil supplies from Russia, the sanctions have not directly affected gas at this point. “I know how to replace Russian oil and diesel,” but “gas – how to replace it, I don’t know,” Patrick Pouyanne, head of TotalEnergies, admitted in March 2023. “There is a commercial reality: European companies have long-term contracts with Russian suppliers”, explains Simone Tagliapietra of the Bruegel Institute.
