Shipments from the sanctioned country almost matched American supplies last month, the outlet has reported

Shipments of liquified natural gas (LNG) from Russia to the EU in July almost matched those from the US, despite the bloc’s efforts to reduce its energy reliance on Moscow, Bloomberg has reported, citing ship-tracking data.

The region reportedly imported around 1.5 million tons of LNG from the US last month, compared to approximately 1.3 million tons supplied by Russia. The gap between the deliveries from the two countries shrank to its narrowest since late 2021, the news agency noted.

The change, however, was attributed to declining shipments from the US, rather than increased imports from Russia. American suppliers are opting to send their LNG tankers to higher-paying regions, according to Bloomberg. In July, the US shipped more of its seaborne gas to Asian consumers than during any month since 2021, the outlet highlighted, adding that demand in the region had surged due to hot weather.

In June, the EU banned some operations related to LNG of Russian origin, including re-loading, ship-to-ship transfers, and ship-to-shore transfers with the purpose of re-exporting to third countries via the bloc. Russian seaborne gas imports into the EU remained permitted via LNG terminals that are linked to the interconnected natural gas network.

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A transshipment prohibition that comes into force next year is expected to lead to more fuel staying in the region, as it will complicate logistics for Russian cargoes, Bloomberg noted, adding that refusing cargoes will be difficult if competition for supplies increases.

Last year, the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, claimed that the EU had reduced Russian gas imports by 80%. However, Ditte Juul Jorgensen, director general for energy in the European Commission, said that the bloc would have to buy gas from the US for decades to replace sharply reduced purchases from Russia, having warned that reliance on US supplies is expected to persist. 

Citing S&P Global Commodity Insights, the Financial Times reported earlier this year that the share of Russian LNG and what remains of pipeline gas deliveries accounted for 13% of the EU’s overall supplies last year, down from a record 40% in 2021.