The EU has repeatedly tried to force Russia to market itself in the European natural gas market. But despite all the years of striving for diversification, there are still many problems between European customers and Gazprom. The current situation is no exception.
This was stated by Martin Vladimirov from the Center for the Study of Democracy in the show Money.bg по Bulgaria ON AIR.
“In times of weakness, Russia continues to use its key role as a market leader to influence natural gas prices or force the EU to ignore the gas directive and allow Nord Stream 2 to be reserved 100% by Gazprom.” something that is contrary to EU competition law, “he said.
According to him, all gas projects that feed Europe’s internal gas market must meet certain principles, and one of them is third-party access to the reservation of capacity.
“In this case, it is obviously a question of access of other Russian companies to this infrastructure,” Vladimirov said.
According to the expert, record high electricity prices do not mean an emergency. This would be the case if there were not enough gas, and such a risk does not exist yet.
“Increased competition for a small amount of gas is leading to this speculative rise in prices. Prices are expected to fall sharply in the spring, and this can be seen in next year’s futures.
We should not confuse the temporary rise in prices, which is associated with a number of regional factors with an emergency situation. “If we panic, it could raise prices even more,” Vladimirov said.
“There are purely market factors that raise prices at these levels, not the overall European energy policy, as Russia says.
Just months ago, gas prices were at record lows never seen before.
We also had decades of low gas prices. This has prompted much of Europe to increase its dependence on gas.
It is not just about politics, but also about private decisions. That is why the crisis in the energy markets is so sensitive even now, “he said.
“Gas has its specific function in energy markets. We will see natural gas as a key player, especially given the trends for investment in alternative technologies.
Having said that, we can say that there is competition for the European market, but the quantities of American, Australian and other liquefied gas are looking for markets in Asia, South Korea, China. Private companies are looking for markets with higher returns, “said the expert.
“Energy, as a key aspect of the functioning of any economy, is used as a lever of influence. We see it now with Russia’s behavior, which is not in recent months, obviously looking for other non-economic goals, namely deepening the presence of gas markets and the finalization of its geopolitical pipeline projects and achieved its goal.
The United States and Germany have reached an agreement that they will not oppose the completion of Nord Stream 2, but will instead help Ukraine’s energy independence.
All that remains now is to convince the EU that it must not abide by its own rules on Nord Stream 2, which is the way to go, “he said.
– .
