The European Union (EU) officially applied a ban on imports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Russia under short-term contracts from April 25.
However, a significant decrease in Russian LNG sales to Europe is unlikely to occur before 2027.
Accordingly, on January 26, the EU Council officially approved a complete ban on Russia's LNG supply to the EU from January 1, 2027, and banned gas transportation by pipeline from September 30, 2027.
The ban on LNG imports under short-term contracts takes effect from April 25, 2026, while short-term contracts for gas transported by pipeline must be completed before June 17, 2026. This regulation takes effect after being announced on February 2, 2026.
According to calculations by TASS news agency, in 2025, Russia ranked second after the US in LNG export value to the EU, accounting for 16.1% of the market share (or 16.2% if including LNG and gas transported through pipelines).
In terms of output, Russia accounts for about 14% of LNG imports into the EU (equivalent to 12.1% of total gas supplies if including pipelines). The total amount of Russian gas supplied to Europe last year reached 38 billion m3, of which more than 20 billion m3 was LNG.
Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin declared that if the EU is determined to completely abandon Russian gas, Moscow can also proactively withdraw early from the European market and shift supply to other customers with greater demand.
Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said that Russian companies can soon shift part of their LNG supply from Europe to friendly countries, including China, India, Thailand and the Philippines, without waiting for new restrictive measures from the EU.
