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Questions and answers on the REPowerEU proposal to phase out Russian gas imports and improve monitoring of potential energy dependencies

European Commission

Questions and answers
Jun 17, 2025
Strasbourg

Why is the Commission proposing to fully phase out Russian fossil fuel imports?

The decades-long reliance on Russian energy imports has made the EU vulnerable to supply disruptions and price fluctuations, which have had a far-reaching impact on the entire economy. Russia has proven to be an unreliable partner by systematically weaponising gas supplies and manipulating energy markets, to the detriment of the European Union's economic security and growth prospects.

Russia's unlawful full-scale invasion of Ukraine fully exposed the dramatic consequences of the existing overdependencies on Russian energy imports, especially gas, on markets and security. The war has severely disrupted global supply chains, triggered substantial increases in energy prices, and introduced considerable volatility into the markets.

Since Russia's unjustified aggression on Ukraine started, the EU has significantly reduced dependencies and energy imports from Russia under the REPowerEU Plan launched in 2022. Gas imports (both LNG and pipeline) from Russia have decreased significantly from 45% in 2021 to 19% in 2024. Projections point to a further fall to 13% in 2025 with the end of the Russian gas transit via Ukraine. Thanks to EU sanctions, Russian oil imports have also shrunk, from 27% at the beginning of 2022 to 3% in 2024. Moreover, sanctions have completely banned imports of Russian coal to the EU and prohibited the reloading of cargoes in EU ports carrying liquified natural gas (LNG) from Russia.

Despite this significant progress, Russian gas and oil supplies remain part of the EU's energy mix. In 2024, the EU saw a rebound in Russian gas imports, with 52 billion cubic meters of Russian gas (32 bcm via pipeline and 20 bcm via LNG) coming to the European market, as well as 13 million tonnes of crude oil.

This leaves the EU exposed to significant risks for trade and energy security, such as potential unpredictable coercive actions by Russia.

This is why the Commission adopted on 6 May a roadmap for a coordinated and step-wise approach to the phase out of Russian energy supplies, covering oil, gas and nuclear energy. Today's legislative proposal aims to ban all remaining imports of Russian gas and to facilitate the complete cessation of oil imports.

What are the concrete measures proposed today and what is their legal basis?

The proposed Regulation aims to redefine the energy trade relations with Russia. To protect EU energy markets from trade-induced risks and to provide for more effective measures to monitor energy supply risks, the proposed Regulation is based on a double legal basis, namely Article 207 TFEU (trade policy) and Article 194(2) TFEU (energy policy).

Crucially, it proposes prohibiting natural gas imports originating in or exported directly or indirectly from the Russian Federation, as well the provision of services in EU LNG terminals to customers from the Russian Federation.

The core proposed measures are the prohibition as of 1 January 2026 of Russian gas imports based on new contracts (concluded after 17 June 2025), and the complete cessation of Russian gas imports under all existing contracts by end of 2027.

The proposed Regulation sets out a gradual phaseout to ensure market and supply stability.

As regards existing supply short-term contracts, the prohibition will apply as of 17 June 2026 for those importers that can demonstrate to customs authorities that these were concluded before 17 June 2025, and have not been amended thereafter. This is because the risk for economic security resulting from these contracts is low.

As regards long-term contracts, the prohibition will apply as of 1 January 2028, provided that importers can demonstrate that long-term contracts were signed before 17 June 2025 and have not been amended thereafter. This is because importers holding long-term contracts may need more time to find alternative supplies, as these usually concern significantly larger volumes compared to short-term contracts. The same transition period, necessary to find new suppliers, should also apply to short-term supply contracts for pipeline gas with suppliers from the Russian Federation which serve to supply landlock countries affected by changes of supply routes for Russian gas, and that are linked to long-term contracts.

Given the essential role that LNG is expected to play in securing alternative energy supplies in Europe, LNG terminal services for customers from Russia or controlled by Russian undertakings will be also prohibited as of 1 January 2026. This will help redirect terminal capacity towards alternative reliable suppliers for Europe. For services provided under long-term contracts signed before 17 June 2025, the prohibition will apply as of 1 January 2028.

To ensure a well-managed and secure phase-out of Russian imports, Member States will have to develop national diversification plans with precise measures and milestones for the gradual elimination of direct or indirect Russian gas imports. The first national plans should be submitted to the Commission by 1 March 2026.

In addition to targeting gas imports, the proposed Regulation further requires that Member States still importing Russian oil prepare diversification plans to phase out all remaining l imports, in view of a complete cessation by the end of 2027. The national diversification plans will have to include information on the volumes of direct or indirect oil imports from the Russian Federation under existing contracts, measures in place or planned to steer the phase out including alternative supplies and supply routes, and potential technical or regulatory barriers for the phase out and options to overcome those.

The Commission will support the Member States throughout the entire process. It will monitor closely, with EU Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators (ACER), the progress in the phase out of Russian gas and oil imports to the EU, and may issue recommendations on the national diversification plans, if necessary.

How will the proposed legislation ensure the traceability of Russian gas across the EU markets?

Experience during the gas crisis of 2022 and 2023 showed that comprehensive information on supply dependencies is crucial to effectively phase out Russian gas imports while ensuring security of gas supply in the Union.

For an effective implementation of the ban on Russian gas imports, the proposed legislation therefore introduces new mechanisms to enhance the transparency, monitoring, and traceability of Russian gas within EU markets. This will be crucial to effectively evaluate possible risks for gas trade and supply security.

Based on an amendment to the EU's security of supply Regulation (EU) 2017/1938, importers of Russian gas will be required to provide detailed contractual information to the European Commission and national competent authorities, including customs. This information should include, among others, contracted volumes, including flexibilities under take-or-pay or delivery-or-pay provisions, conclusion date, contract duration and the identities of the contract partners, gas producer, and country of production. For LNG imports, information touch upon the port of first loading, delivery points and schedules, as well as conditions for suspension or termination of delivering, among others.

Customs authorities should foster the exchange of information with relevant national authorities, the Commission and the ACER. Such cooperation would enable the effective monitoring of the implementation and compliance with the phase-out objectives. ACER should also publish a report providing an overview of contracts on the supply of gas originating in or directly or indirectly exported from Russia and assessing the impact of diversification on energy markets.

Furthermore, importers will be obliged to report changes in contract terms immediately after the adoption of the legislative proposal to facilitate the accurate monitoring of Russian gas entering the EU. The data will be complemented by Member States' national diversification plans.

Overall, this system will establish an effective framework to ascertain the actual origin and the point of export of natural gas imported into the Union. The emerging dataset will also enable the Commission to assess the Union's exposure to Russian gas and the effectiveness of phase-out strategies.

What will be the impact on the EU's security of supply and on energy prices?

Russia's weaponisation of energy supplies has directly impacted European households and businesses causing unprecedented security risks and instability on the energy markets.

The actions set out in this legislative proposal will be deployed gradually over time and in a coordinated manner with the Member States, to minimise possible impacts on prices, stabilise markets through secure and predictable alternative supplies and provide legal certainty. Initially, the import ban on Russian gas will only affect new contracts, while imports based on existing long-term contracts will be allowed to continue until the end of 2027.

The Commission has carefully assessed potential impacts. As set out in the analysis accompanying the proposal, the remaining gas volumes can be phased out without significant economic impact or risks to security of supply, due to the availability of sufficient alternative suppliers in the global gas market, a well interconnected Union gas market and the availability of sufficient import infrastructure in the EU.

As of 2025, global LNG supplies are foreseen to grow rapidly, while the EU's gas demand is expected to decrease. With the full implementation of the clean energy transition framework and the Action Plan for Affordable Energy, the EU is expected to replace up to 100 bcm of natural gas by 2030, which means a decrease in demand by 40-50 bcm already by 2027. At the same time, global LNG capacities are expected to increase by around 200 bcm by 2028, which is five times more than current EU imports of Russian gas.

The proposed Regulation contains important safeguards to face sudden and significant developments on the gas market which seriously threaten the security of supply of one or more Member States. In those circumstances, the Commission could take the necessary emergency measures by authorising one or more Member States not to apply the import prohibitions concerning natural gas or LNG imports. Such an authorisation should be limited in time and the Commission may impose additional conditions, to ensure that any suspension is strictly limited to addressing the threat.

The phase-out of oil by 2027 would not raise security of supply concerns. The Adria pipeline represents a valid alternative to replace the remaining Russian pipeline supplies. The impact on prices is also expected to be limited, as the additional demand to replace Russian oil is unlikely to have material impact on the global oil markets, and therefore on prices.

Importantly, all the measures proposed will be accompanied by sustained efforts to ensure alternative supplies, including via demand aggregation, and optimising the use of existing gas infrastructure. They will also be underpinned by the EU's clean energy transition, whereby renewable energy and energy efficiency improvements will gradually reduce the need to import fossil fuels.

The close coordination between the Commission and Member States to prepare for the end of the Russian gas transit agreement via Ukraine in December 2024 proved that coordinated preparatory actions, diversification efforts and a gradual approach in phasing out Russian imports can avoid any risk for security of supply and guarantee price stability, and market predictability.