Paris is preparing for the total cessation of gas deliveries from Russia
French authorities are preparing for a complete suspension of gas deliveries from Russia, according to the country’s finance minister, Bruno Le Maire, who is considering a halt as complete as the « most likely scenario ».
« I think a total cut off of Russian gas supply is a real possibility…and we have to be prepared for that scenario, » The Mayor said, speaking on the sidelines of a conference on business and the economy in the south of France, quoted by Reuters.
“It would be totally irresponsible to ignore this scenario,” he said. « We’re almost there already. »
According to the minister, the first line of defense is for households and businesses to reduce their energy consumption, then the construction of new infrastructure such as a floating plant that will be able to regasify shipments of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from abroad .
Paris is also studying company by company to see which could be forced to reduce production capacity to save energy if necessary, Le Maire said.
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The French government has prepared emergency plans despite the fact that the country is less dependent on Russian gas supplies than other European countries. About 17% of France’s total supply would come from Russia.
Last week, research by the Center for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) revealed that France was the world’s largest importer of Russian liquefied natural gas in 2022. The data shows short-term purchases The country’s futures in LNG, crude oil, and petroleum products were worth about 900 million euros ($940 million) in April-May.
Earlier this month, Gazprom-affiliated Nord Stream AG announced it would close the Nord Stream 1 pipeline, a major conduit, for ten days for scheduled annual maintenance. The operator stressed that the stop had been previously agreed with all partners.
Last month, the Russian energy giant cut gas volumes delivered to Germany via the pipeline by 60% due to operational difficulties, caused by the failure to return a serviced turbine from Canada on time. .
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