According to the European Union Economy Commissioner, Paolo Gentiloni on Saturday, the European Union was “well prepared” in the event of a total halt in Russian gas deliveries, thanks to storage capacity and energy-saving measures.
Ambrosetti told reporters in an economic forum organised by The European House, “We are well prepared to resist Russia’s extreme use of the gas weapon.”
He continued, “We are not afraid of Putin’s decisions, we are asking the Russians to respect contracts, but if they don’t, we are ready to react.”
Clariform recalls that on Friday, Russian gas giant, Gazprom, said that the Nord Stream pipeline linking Russia to northern Germany which was scheduled to resume service on Saturday after a three-day break for maintenance operations reasons would be “completely” stopped until a turbine is repaired.
There are speculations that Russia is reacting to a decision announced by G7 countries on Friday to target Russia’s energy windfall by agreeing to cap the price of its oil.
According to European Commission chief, Ursula von der Leyen, “it would be time to put a ceiling on the price of gas imported via the pipeline from Russia”
This backs a measure advocated by Italian Prime Minister, Mario Draghi. The European Union has stated that, “gas storage is currently at about 80 per cent, thanks to the diversification of supplies.”
Gentiloni said that Brussels had “done a lot in recent months” but “today it is possible to do more”.
According to Gentiloni, The purpose is to “pursue the strategy of a united Europe that works against the invasion of Ukraine using economic weapons.”
He continued, “We are not participating in the war, we are not participating in the military escalation.”
“We are supporting Ukraine. We have to do it now more effectively.”
