European Union to commit to phasing out dependency on Russian energy

The European Union is committed to phasing out its dependency on Russian energy as soon as possible to ensure the 27-nation bloc no longer faces difficult decisions about hurting their own economies in geopolitical crises like the invasion of Ukraine.

The 27 EU leaders meet in Versailles outside Paris for a two-day summit starting Thursday and will be working on ways to reduce their dependency on Moscow for fossil fuels.

We agreed to phase out our dependency on Russian gas, oil and coal imports, said a draft of the summit declaration seen by The Associated Press.

At the same time, the European Commission, the EU's executive arm, was preparing proposals on Tuesday to make it happen.

For well over a decade, the EU has felt increasingly stuck when it came to addressing its deteriorating relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, but the prospect of leaving tens of millions shivering in the winter cold because of a dearth of fossil fuels or sky-high prices limited the political options.

The invasion of Ukraine was a gamechanger, and within two weeks, the EU has rallied to prepare a more robust energy policy. But it still hasn't signed on to sanctioning Russian energy, even as some U.S. leaders have signaled a willingness to ban its oil.

In the draft statement, EU leaders commit to diversifying our supplies and routes including through the use of LNG (liquefied natural gas) and the development of biogas and hydrogen.

Already committed to the rapid development of renewables because of climate change, they will accelerate the process now to buttress their political independence, too.

The bloc will move to improve the connections between member states so liquid natural gas arriving in Spain, for example, can quickly be sent on to the rest of the continent.

Energy prices have been high for months because of low supplies, driving up the cost of everything from utility bills to groceries as businesses pass along their costs to customers.

The price of natural gas is 10 times what it was at the start of 2021. It continues to flow through the major pipelines from Russia to Europe, including those through Ukraine, pipeline companies say.

The EU is focusing on making the bloc more independent by next winter, which will be the first major challenge. Europe, which gets almost 40% of its gas from Russia, is in a different situation than the U.S., which produces its own natural gas.

The Paris-based International Energy Agency said last week that Russian gas imports could be cut by one-third this year by letting existing gas contracts with Russia expire, finding new supplies from partners such as Norway and Azerbaijan, imposing minimum storage requirements, maximizing use of remaining nuclear plants and offering cash support for vulnerable electricity customers.