The European Union (EU) will have to spend close to 200 billion euros in the next five years to secure energy independence from Russia, according to draft plans that set out strict targets in areas such as clean energy and lowering consumption.
The European Commission is set to unveil a 195 billion-euro plan to stop the import of Russian fossil fuels by 2027 and to combine faster use of renewable energy and energy savings with a shift to alternative gas supplies, according to a draft revealed yesterday.
The draft, which could change before it is out next week, includes a mix of EU laws, non-binding plans, and recommendations that national governments could implement, including a review of plans for the huge amounts earmarked for the EU’s Covid-19 pandemic recovery and more spending to transform energy sources.
The EU will also raise the possibility of increasing liquified natural gas (LNG) imports from countries including Egypt and Nigeria, as well as upgrading the infrastructure needed to replace Russian gas imports.
Natural gas prices jumped in Europe, amid fears of the impact of suspending the transit of Russian gas through a pipeline in Ukraine, and of Moscow taking a step to respond to the sanctions imposed on it.
Yesterday, the price of the benchmark contract surged by as much as 15 percent, in the backdrop of data showing that Russian flows through Ukraine will decline by about 30 percent.
