In the coverage of energy issues, today’s European press focuses on Gazprom. The European Commission announced on Thursday that it will examine the decision of the Russian energy giant to transport natural gas to Europe via Turkey. During Wednesday’s visit of the EC Vice-President for the Energy Union Maros Sefcovic in Moscow, Gazprom CEO Alexey Miller Miller stated that Russian natural gas will be shipped to Europe through Turkey and not via Bulgaria, as the European side was hoping, reports capital.gr.
EC spokesperson Anna-Kaisa Itkonen stated that Brussels will define its stance after the responsible services analyse whether Gazprom’s plan is economically sustainable. The EC will study Gazprom’s offer to buy 50-60 billion cubic meters of Russian gas via Turkey, says the Bulgarian National Radio (BNR). Brussels called on the Russian giant to continue its dialogue with the EU and to consider all options for supplies to Europe’s Southeast region, adds BNR. Sirje Rank says in Estonia’s Aripäev that Gazprom decided to change its gas transit from Ukraine to Turkey “in an unexpected move”.
This decision “would harm the image of Gazprom as a reliable supplier,” EC VP Sefcovic is quoted saying in Les Echos. The French newspaper writes that Gazprom’s statement is a way to respond to Brussels’ requirements, in the framework of the development of an energy union, according to which the Russian giant should accept that its competitors can use half the pipelines capacity transporting its gas. “The EU is faced a difficult choice”, adds the economic newspaper. It may refuse the Turkish demands of Gazprom but this implies to continue to receive Russian gas supplies via Ukraine, which is a random transit, as recalled Mr Miller. Alternatively, the EU accepts the requirements of Gazprom and is then obliged to build an expensive pipeline network linking Turkey to European countries.
Several European media – including Aripäev and Politiken – and Russia’s RBC Daily recalled that Mr Šefcovic was very surprised by the Russian decision. The ECVP believes that Mr Miller’s announcement stands and no economic ground, reports FAZ. “This might be a bluff and a sort of game between Russia and the EU,” writes the Hungarian website 444. Meanwhile, in his column in Slovakia’s Hospodárske noviny, Dag Daniš describes Mr Sefcovic’s visit to Moscow as “unsuccessful” as he came home with three bad news: Russia warned about a potential gas crisis this year, said that the Russian gas transit cannot be done through Ukraine and told Europe that it potentially needs to build new pipelines from Turkey and Greece at its own costs.
Along the same lines, Bulgarian media say that Mr Sefcovic’s visit could hardly be called productive as he failed to fulfil his intention to discuss a new agreement about the Russian gas delivery for Ukraine next spring or summer. In other news on energy, Bulgaria’s 24 Chasa Daily focuses on US Secretary of State John Kerry’s first official visit to the country. Asked about whether Washington would commit to any financial guarantees or the implementation of other projects in Bulgaria following the suspension of the South Stream project, Mr Kerry stated that he spoke to HRVP Federica Mogherini and EUVP Sefcovic, in order to encourage the establishment of the gas interconnector between Bulgaria and Greece, which is important for both Bulgaria and the US.© European Union, 2015
