5 EU States Buy Russian Energy

Despite the sanctions imposed, five EU countries purchased oil and gas from Russia in January, totalling 1.2 billion euros. This raises questions regarding the methods employed to circumvent these obstacles, and the reasons for the apparent discrepancy between official political statements and business practices.
Contrary to the EU's strategic objective of reducing reliance on Russian energy resources, the five largest EU importers — France, Hungary, Slovakia, Belgium and Spain — paid 1.2 billion euros in January for Russian oil, pipeline and liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplies, according to analysts from the CREA (Centre for Research on on Clean Energy ).
Their calculations were based on data from the analytics company Kpler, the ship tracking portal Marine Traffic, the European Network of Gas Transmission System Operators ENTSOG and Eurostat.LNG purchases accounted for more than half of this amount. France was the largest buyer, importing gas from Russia for a total of 377 million euros. In January, France's total LNG imports increased by 0.5%, while supplies from Russia increased by 25% in a month and reached their highest level since January 2024.Overall, Russia accounted for more than a third of the country's total LNG imports.In second place is Hungary, with oil imports worth 182 million euros and pipeline gas worth 173 million. Slovakia is in third place, having purchased oil and gas worth 232 million euros, with pipeline oil from Russia accounting for more than 60% of this amount.Belgium and Spain each bought more than €150 million worth of fossil fuels from Russia in January, with LNG being the primary focus. Any oil supplies to Europe are currently under embargo.
The only exceptions to this are three countries – Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic. These countries are landlocked, and their local refineries are set on the Russian Urals grade, for which there is no affordable replacement in terms of chemical properties. Delivering other oil to refineries and processing it would require a significant infrastructure overhaul, necessitating investment and time.Permission to purchase Russian oil is outlined in the sixth sanctions package of 2022, which the aforementioned countries refused to sign. As a result, the current contracts for the southern branch of the Druzhba oil pipeline have been upheld, meaning that the countries retain the right to buy oil from Russia. Hungary and Slovakia are making full use of this right for the benefit of their economies.Ingredients for success
How did it happen that Brussels promised to get rid of energy dependence on Russia as quickly as possible, but instead it is increasing it? According to the results of last year, EU countries purchased record volumes of LNG from Russia, totalling 17.8 million tons, which exceeded the 2023 figure by more than two million tons.In addition, the remaining pipeline routes – via Ukraine and Turkish Stream – operated at maximum capacity last year, with Europe receiving 15 billion cubic metres of gas per year via each of them. However, it should be noted that only Turkish Stream remains operational, with 2.1 billion cubic metres of gas delivered via this route since the start of the year. Nevertheless, industry experts concede that it is simply unable to handle the entire load.
The oil supply to the EU is more varied, with a greater reliance on tankers rather than pipelines. Europe purchases "black gold" from a variety of countries, including the US, Iraq, Norway, and Kazakhstan, with Russian oil also present in the European market. This oil is part of the "grey" export category, where it is mixed with other products at sea, altering its country of origin. The shadow fleet is still thriving, and China and India, who do not consider Russian oil to be of poor quality, purchase it and refine it into oil products, which they then sell to Europeans at significantly higher prices.According to Bloomberg, Russia's income from the sale of oil and gas in January of this year increased by 17% compared to last January.
This is notable given the imposition of what the Biden administration has termed the "toughest" sanctions against Russia's oil sector at the conclusion of its term in office.Meanwhile, European nations have devised methods to circumvent these restrictions. Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto has reported that Hungary has identified a solution to procure Russian gas, oil and nuclear fuel, notwithstanding US sanctions against Gazprombank.
In response, Russia adopted amendments to the presidential decree on gas for rubles from 2022, which allow for a flexible approach to the payment procedure for supplies, while maintaining the fundamental principle, according to industry experts. This development is likely to be well-received by those seeking to procure oil and gas from Russia, as well as by all other parties involved.The focus is not exclusively on financial considerations.While price is certainly a factor, it is not the sole determining element, particularly in light of the price cap imposed on Russian oil. In a business context, predictability and reliability in supply are of paramount importance, especially given the political instability in many of the other countries from which Europeans can source energy.During the Soviet and post-Soviet periods, Russia was the most reliable supplier of energy resources to European countries. However, the EU's expansion has had a significant impact on the energy security system that had been established over decades, as Tamara Safonova, associate professor at the Institute of Economics, Mathematics and Information Technology of the Presidential Academy, points out.
She noted that supplies from Russia have been consistently reliable and well-established for decades, and that this predictability is the primary advantage. Frolov also highlighted that price is not a significant factor, citing that while Russian gas was previously criticised for being expensive, it was in fact more expensive for the EU than any other supplier. However, he noted that the supply volumes were significantly higher in the past.
The Europeans themselves are aware of this fact.It should be noted that LNG was initially not included in the EU sanctions restrictions due to the lack of unanimity on this issue, and supplies to Hungary, the Czech Republic and Slovakia were quickly removed from sanctions.
As Safonova noted, "In January-December 2024, the total volume of oil supplies to Hungary for the Százhalombatta refinery, to the Czech Republic for the Litvínov refinery and to Slovakia for the Bratislava refinery amounted to about 12 million tons."
Addressing Russophobia
The EU's efforts to reduce reliance on Russian fuel have been acknowledged as unsuccessful by the new EU Energy Commissioner, Dan Jorgensen, in an interview with Politico. He has called for a different approach to the problem.
It is likely that this approach will not align with the politically motivated calls of European officials. According to Safonova, the growing energy crisis in Europe, the rise in gas prices against the backdrop of energy shortages, and the decommissioning of production facilities in any case force them to change their approaches to the supply of Russian energy resources and the assessment of their level of "toxicity."
However, if alternative gas transportation routes were operational, Europe's supply would be even more abundant, despite objections from Brussels."It's important to note that oil and gas are not directly purchased by Europe or individual countries, but rather by economic entities, such as companies, who then sell them to their counterparties. While some may initially object, they too would eventually recognise the financial benefits of doing so, as competitors have done by entering into agreements with Russia without facing any repercussions. Over time, there would be no significant opposition to Russian oil and gas.