MOSCOW, January 21. /TASS/. The International Energy Agency (IEA) does not expect resumption of Russian gas supplies to Europe via Ukraine in 2025, according to the agency’s report on the gas market.
"Russia’s gas transit flows via Ukraine halted on 1 January 2025 and this forecast does not assume their restart. This would translate into a decline of 13 bcm of Russian piped supplies to the European Union compared to 2024," the report says.
The overall disruption would result in a total loss of 15 billion cubic meters of gas supplies from Russia for Europe. However, the IEA maintains that this situation does not pose an immediate threat to the security of supply to the EU.
"But the vulnerability of Moldova - which declared a 60-day state of emergency in December ahead of the halt of Russian piped gas deliveries - is significantly greater, requiring close co-operation with its regional and international partners to ensure energy supply security through the winter season. In the region of Transnistria, heat and hot water supply cuts for residential consumers have been in place since 1 January," the agency says.
As a result, the halt in Ukrainian transit and the high rate of gas withdrawal from storage facilities together will lead to an increase in LNG imports by Europe this year, as well as a tightening of the global gas balance, the IEA predicts.