After all, Russian gas could continue to reach Europe

The “swap agreement” can “rebrand” Russian gas: it becomes Azerbaijani and can enter the European market. The Russian export had an expiration date: December of this year. Now, the scenario can change in your favor, and COP29 is favorable.

It is during the climate summit, at COP29, that the possibility of Russian gas continuing to penetrate the European market is being discussed.

According to , Socar, Azerbaijan’s state-owned energy company, could start as an intermediary between Russian gas and Europe— gas from Gazprom, the largest company of its kind in Moscow, would be rebranded as Azerbaijaniwith equivalent volumes of Baku gas labeled as Russian.

This is the “exchange agreement” on the table at the COP. If approved, this scheme washes the hands of European importers: the gas deal will be done directly with Azerbaijanand there is no contact with Russia. In theory.

According to The Telegraph, Azerbaijan has significant gas reserves, but unlike Russia, it does not have the necessary infrastructure to ship substantial quantities directly to Europe. In this way, the agreement also benefits Azerbaijan.

The export of Russian gas to Europe currently exists: the Kremlin pays 758 million euros annually to Ukraine to, through that country, send the material to the European continent. However, this agreement expires at the end of 2024.

According to the British newspaper, analysts consider that the “gas exchange” would suit Putin very well, indirectly financing the Kremlin’s war against Ukraine, undermining international sanctions and maintaining Europe’s dependence on Russian energy.

“Last weekend, we Ukrainians faced one of the biggest mass attacks in Russia,” he told The Telegraph Svitlana Romankodirector of Razom We Stand, a Ukrainian organization calling for an ongoing embargo on Russian fossil fuels.

“These attacks were paid for, in large part, by Russian fossil fuel exportssome of which were sent to European countries, or embarked on ships owned or insured by Europeans.”

But there are also those who claim, as Thierry Brosprofessor at Sciences Po Paris and collaborator at Natural Gas World, who “the Europe still does not have the capacity, nor the political will, to move away from Russian gas before 2027“, explains: “Putin still has the ability to create volatility and increase prices”.