EU still ‘funding repressive regimes’ as plot to ditch Russian gas could backfire

“We, with our partners in Germany and Europe, fully agree on providing the continent with energy, especially with gas.”

But while Algeria appears for the moment to remain committed to supplying the EU with more gas,  Jacopo Casadei, gas analyst at Energy Aspects, has warned that its promise to double deliveries was “not feasible” as some countries would “struggle” to absorb the large quantities it is hoping to send to storage plants. 

However, Alergia is not the only country the EU is turning to as it races to fill up its gas storage sites amid fears that Russia, which supplied 40 percent of the bloc’s gas before the Ukraine war, will cut off remaining flows. 

The bloc has also turned to Qatar, a major producer, to help fill up these reserves. But as tensions soar amid the major corruption scandal that has come to light this week, there are fears the Doha could do just as Putin has and withhold supplies. 

It came after MEPs voted to suspend legislative work on a visa liberalisation deal with Doha, banning all Qatari officials or business representatives from the European parliament. This came following the arrest of disgraced Greek MEP and a vice-president of the European Parliament, Eva Kaili.

READ MORE: Kremlin rages at ‘violation’ after EU smashes Putin’s energy empire

Article source: https://www.express.co.uk/news/science/1712525/eu-gas-russia-vladimir-putin-cap-algeria-qatar