And Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala has also warned EU countries should prepare for a potential energy crisis if: Russia chooses to extend the maintenance work on its Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline. Mr Fiala stressed that there is no chance of such measures being included in a seventh round of sanctions against Moscow in response to: RussiaThe invasion of Ukraine on February 24.
Fiala said the package now being finalized by the European Commission and intended to increase pressure on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is expected to ban gold imports, expand a list of dual-use items that are banned for export to Russia and would target more individuals.
The European Commission should be ready to present the package in the coming days and member states could approve it immediately afterward, Mr Fiala said, but admitted there would be one glaring omission.
From his office in Prague, he explained: “We are working on a seventh pack and I think it is a good course.
“What is certainly problematic is to include energy in the sanctions, because there is a rule to follow that the sanctions must have a greater impact on Russia than on the countries that impose the sanctions.”
Referring specifically to gas, he added, “I think it shouldn’t be there because a number of countries depend on Russian gas.”
The Czech Republic, which took on the rotating EU presidency on July 1, is one such country that relies on Russia for almost all of its gas needs.
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However, despite calls from Ukraine for such an embargo, gas imports have not been touched.
The latest sanctions are being prepared amid mounting fears in Europe that Russia could extend planned maintenance of the main Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline, which began on July 11 and is expected to last 10 days.
Such a move would further restrict European supplies and disrupt countries’ plans to fill storage for the winter, sending the continent into an energy crisis.
Mr Fiala warned that Europe must be ready for the possibility that Nord Stream 1 flows will not restart, look for alternative sources of gas supply, such as LNG, and be ready to share stocks among Member States.
Another idea he supports would be to jointly source gas in Europe, but warned that it remained difficult both technically and administratively.
“I don’t want to be too optimistic,” he said, when asked if joint purchases could start as early as this year, adding that EU energy ministers would discuss the proposal at an extraordinary meeting on July 26.
Brussels is bracing for further declines in Russian gas supplies, a scenario the head of the International Monetary Fund warned on Wednesday that economies could plunge into recession.
The European Commission’s plan, to be published on July 20, will propose countries to give financial incentives to companies to reduce gas consumption, use state aid to encourage industries and power plants to switch to other fuels, and roll out information campaigns to encourage consumers to use less heating and cooling.
Measures targeting industry could include auctions or tenders where large consumers are compensated for using less gas, according to the draft, which could change before publication.
Governments should also decide in what order they would force industries to close in an emergency, it said. The order should take into account how essential an installation’s services are and how its closure would flow through the supply chains.