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The United States will increase shipments of liquefied natural gas to the European Union. According to the Financial Times, the US is finalizing a plan to deliver up to 15 billion cubic meters of LNG by the end of 2022 to help the EU reduce its dependence on Russia.
US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said on Wednesday that tomorrow, when the US President meets European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen before his departure, an agreement will be reached between the Biden administration and the European Union on the LPG shipments announced for Poland.
Seeks
Ursula von der Leyen said before Biden’s visit to the European Parliament on Wednesday that the EU was looking for additional gas supplies from the USA “for the next two winters”.
European Union countries import 90% of the natural gas used to generate electricity, heat homes and power industry, with Russia supplying the EU with almost 40% of gas and a quarter of its oil. Brussels is now looking at ways to reduce its dependence on Russian gas by diversifying its suppliers.
German fears
Germany’s natural gas supply situation is threatening to deteriorate, and a major German energy company has called on the Berlin government to issue a firstlevel alert in its contingency plan, according to Bloomberg reports.
Bdew, which represents Germany’s biggest gas and electricity suppliers, said it could not rule out supply disruptions as a result of Vladimir Putin’s demand for payment in rubles.
Goldman Sachs forecasts
According to analysts at bank Goldman Sachs, instead of increasing US production, Washington would consider diverting enough LNG to Europe to help Europe restock to safe levels before next winter. However, the unknown factor is that the flow of gas from Russia could be cut off after the crisis deepened, even after Vladimir Putin’s demand to be paid in rubles.