Until 2022, the country was one of the most dependent on Russian gas in Europe – the Russian Federation provided up to 60% of German needs.

Before the war, Gazprom provided about 60% of gas consumption in Germany. Last year’s supply cuts and explosions at the Nord Stream pipeline, the shutdown of a number of industrial production and the cost-saving measures that Germans and other residents of EU countries were forced to resort to forced Russian propagandists to shower them with ridicule, writes Reuters.

Since then, prices have collapsed 10-fold, and Germany has learned to do without Russian gas. Now 60% of consumption is provided by Norway. The largest gas producer in Europe, it became Germany’s main supplier immediately after the departure of Gazprom. Since then, the parties have entered into several more agreements, and this week German state-owned energy company Sefe and Norway’s Equinor announced a 50 billion euro contract that will cover about a third of Germany’s industrial gas demand.

As a result, Norway’s share will reach 60%, Reuters notes. True, such a strong dependence on one supplier carries risks, although not the same as those associated with Russia and the actions of Gazprom. The shared political views of Germany and Norway reduce the likelihood of disruptions, but do not guarantee against technical problems, given the massive network of pipelines linking Norway to the continent, said Henning Gloystein, an analyst at Eurasia Group. However, the branching of the network adds reliability, he stipulates: if necessary, gas can be sent through another branch.

LNG supplies became additional sources of imports. Germany, in particular, has signed long-term agreements with the American ConocoPhillips and Venture Global. It has also reduced consumption, although its industry still relies heavily on gas-fired electricity and gas as a raw material. As a result, average monthly gas imports decreased this year by more than 25% compared to last year.

In the future, as part of the green transition, Germany plans to further reduce its consumption. The deal between Sefe and Equinor will replace gas with hydrogen supplies from 2029.

Trade in Russian gas

In the first half of 2023, Russian gas exports to Europe decreased by almost 40 billion cubic meters, and by the end of the year, production in Russia will fall by another 62 billion.

This is stated in the review of the International Energy Agency (IEA) on the gas market. “In the first half of 2023, Russian gas supplies via pipeline to the European Union fell by more than 75% (or 36 billion cubic meters),” the report says.

As noted in the document, natural gas production in Russia at the end of this year will fall by 62 billion cubic meters compared to last year’s figures: from 672 billion cubic meters in 2022 to 610 billion cubic meters this year (by 9.2 percent).

In pre-war 2021, Russia produced 762 billion cubic meters, that is, in total over two years, the Russian Federation will lose 152 billion cubic meters of natural gas production.