EU falls behind on plan to wean itself off Russian oil and gas

Source: Meduza

The European Union has fallen short of its plan to wean itself off Russian oil and gas, auditors at the European Court of Auditors (ECA) have concluded.

The EU launched the REPowerEU program in 2022 to cut its dependence on Russian energy resources. The program calls for developing renewable energy, expanding connections between EU countries’ energy grids, and diversifying oil and gas supplies. Over four years, EU countries have spent only 54.3 billion euros of the 300 billion euros available for REPowerEU projects.

Four years after its launch, REPowerEU has stalled, even though several hundred billion euros have been made available,” said Mihails Kozlovs, the ECA member responsible for the report.

EU imports of Russian oil and gas have dropped sharply since 2021, from 153.2 billion cubic meters to 37.8 billion. But the auditors say the decline owes less to REPowerEU than to mild winters and lower consumption driven by high prices.

Some countries, meanwhile, continue buying Russian energy resources aggressively. Belgium increased its imports from 2.4 billion cubic meters in 2021 to 3.4 billion in 2024, peaking at 4 billion in 2023. By July 2026, Belgium had become fully dependent on Russian LNG supplies amid disruptions from the war in Iran. A significant portion of that gas is then resold to other EU countries.

According to the ECA, one reason REPowerEU has moved so slowly is that countries themselves lacked concrete plans. To access the program’s funding, they were required to update their national energy and climate plans, but most left out specific measures or targets.

A full ban on imports of Russian LNG to the EU is set to take effect in January 2027.

At Meduza, we are committed to transparency about our use of artificial intelligence in the newsroom. The story you’re reading was written by one of our living, breathing journalists and translated from Russian using an AI model configured to follow our strict editorial standards. This translation process is the result of extensive testing and refinements to ensure our English-language coverage is timely and accurate. A Meduza editor reviews every draft before publication.

If you find any errors in this translation, please contact us at reports@meduza.io.

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EU falls behind on plan to wean itself off Russian oil and gas

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EU falls behind on plan to wean itself off Russian oil and gas

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