The European Commission (EC) will not consider paying compensation for terminated Russian gas purchase contracts, Dan Jorgen, EU Energy and Housing Commissioner, said at a press conference after a meeting of EU Energy Ministers.
No, we are not proposing compensation. Many member states have stopped importing energy from Russia, despite suffering great losses, he said.
Mr. Jorgen noted that EU countries that still have valid contracts with Russia will be recommended to terminate these agreements based on the force majeure clause, in order to avoid compensation obligations for contract cancellation.
The EU's energy and housing commissioner added that the ban on EU countries buying gas from Russia will continue to come into effect after the conflict in Ukraine ends.
Currently, about 19,9% of total gas imports into Europe come from Russia.
In relevant developments, on June 17, the European Commission (EC) plans to propose specific measures and provide a legal basis for implementing the plan that was announced last month.
However, on June 16, Hungary and Slovakia prevented EU Energy Ministers from making a joint statement in support of the plan, despite the consensus of the remaining 25 member states.
eneergy policy is a national sovereignty right, and this is threatening our sovereignty and energy security, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said, confirming that Hungary had denied the joint statement.
A spokesperson for the Slovakian delegation to the EU also confirmed that the country had taken a similar move.
The European Commission aims to completely end imports of Russian gas and liquefied natural gas by the end of 2027.
The European Commission will use the legal basis for the proposal, which would require the approval of at least 15/27 member states and representatives of at least 65% of the EU population, along with the majority approval in the European Parliament, according to EU officials.
At a closed-door meeting on 16 June, most of the EU Energy Ministers expressed their support for the proposal. However, there are still some concerns that terminating long-term contracts could put companies at risk of legal trouble or financial losses.
In other developments related to Russian and EU energy, data from the European gas transmission network Entsog shows that Russian gas transported via the TurkStream pipeline in the Black Sea to Europe is gradually recovering as the periodic maintenance of this gas pipeline is about to end.
Bulgarian gas pipeline operator Bulgartransgaz said that TurkStream's receiving stations and Russkaya measuring stations in Russia were maintained from June 10 to 17.
According to Entsog, in the period from June 1 to 9, the amount of Russian gas transported through the European branch of TurkStream reached an average of about 46 million m3/day.
TurkStream is currently the only gas pipeline still transporting Russian gas to Europe, after explosions disrupted the flow through Nord Stream in September 2022 and the transit of Russian gas through Ukraine was completely stopped from January 1, 2025 due to contract expiration.
