Austria’s Energy Ministry has warned of a “massive risk” from a sudden stoppage of Russian natural gas due to the EU member’s heavy reliance on fuel from the sanctions-hit country, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday.
European gas prices started soaring last week over supply concerns, after Ukrainian forces launched their cross-border incursion into Russia’s Kursk Region. One of the towns affected by the clashes was Sudzha, located some 9km from the border. The town is home to the last remaining gas metering station in operation between Ukraine and Russia.
“As long as there is a dependency on Russian gas supplies, there is a massive risk of a corresponding supply failure with far-reaching consequences,” the Austrian energy ministry wrote late on Monday, according to the report. “We must end Austria’s dependency on Russian gas supplies as soon as possible,” it reportedly urged.
Vienna has been seeking to end its decades-long dependency on affordable Russian gas since the start of the Ukraine conflict. However, it has failed to find alternative providers, as imports from other countries have proven to be much more expensive.
Austria’s imports of Russian gas reached pre-Ukraine conflict levels last year, as the country imported almost double the amount of gas its economy needed. Stable Russian gas supplies and increased shipments allowed Vienna to become a net energy exporter for the first time in twenty years.
Earlier this month, media reported that Austria’s ruling coalition has pledged to end Russian gas imports by 2027 as part of a broader transformation of the country’s energy system. The government is expected to present a detailed road map ahead of national elections on September 29.
In February, Austrian Energy Minister Leonor Gewessler urged that radical steps must be taken to stop the country’s reliance on Russian gas, including breaking a long-term deal that the state energy company OMV signed with Russia’s Gazprom until 2040. The minister admitted that the share of Austria’s gas imports from Russia was growing, and had hit a record high of 98% in December.
The outlet cited the worst-case scenario published by the government, which envisions an abrupt halt to the Russian gas flow, suggesting that in such a case, Austria won’t be able to ship more fuel through Italy, and gas in storage could sink to just 15% of capacity by 2026.
A more likely scenario envisions Russian supplies stopping from January 2025, and storage at 60% of capacity heading into 2027, according to Bloomberg.
Russia’s Gazprom reported earlier that gas transit through Sudzha was continuing in line with contracted volumes.