DISINFO: Attempts to find alternatives to Russian gas result in increased energy prices
SUMMARY
The most reliable and cheapest gas supplies are carried out through pipelines from Russia. The most reliable way to protect against price fluctuations on the gas market is to sign a long-term, fixed-price gas supply contract with Gazprom.
All the “acrobatics” connected to finding alternatives to direct Russian energy supplies, such as LNG terminals, reverse gas flows and shale gas exploration, leads to the situation in which energy prices only increase.
RESPONSE
Pro-Kremlin disinformation related to the Russian gas policy towards Europe. This narrative promotes a traditional pro-Kremlin message that Gazprom is the only reliable source of gas for Europe and that European countries should stop their policy of energy diversification because it is “unprofitable”.
During recent decades, Russia has used its energy resources on multiple occasions as a weapon against other countries, attempting to coerce them into following a pro-Kremlin line.
The diversification of energy supplies is one of the cornerstones of the EU's energy policy – it helps to strengthen European energy security, prevent monopolisation of the energy market and to introduce more competition to the energy market.
In August-September 2021, the European market faced an unprecedented spike in gas prices. One of the reasons for this situation is, according to the experts, a visible reduction in Russian gas supplies to Europe. For example, the gas supply via the Yamal-Europe pipeline reduced by more than 50%. In this situation, experts accuse Russia of weaponising gas supplies in order to exert pressure on the EU. In September 2021, a group of European Parliament members appealed for an investigation into the role of Gazprom in the massive increase in gas prices in Europe. This situation is perceived as Russian pressure on the EU to accelerate launch of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline.
See more cases concerning energy in Europe, including Europe catastrophically lacks gas, the US wants to completely capture the European gas market and the US would like to resell Russian gas to Europe.