Tribune. Can we still morally and politically buy gas from Russia when the army of Vladimir Putin crushes Ukraine, besiege Kiev, bombing entire cities, inflicts an appalling torture to the civilian population to which we provide support we do not Let’s stop reminding.
Certainly severe sanctions have been decided at the European level of leaders and many oligarchs, questioning investments (like North Stream 2) and reducing the volume of trade between Russia and the rest of the world. The reliance on the financial system of a significant volume of transactions and the blows to Russian banks also have their effectiveness. But for simple reasons to understand and holding our dependence (40% for the European Union), gas and oil supplies have been sanctuarized and contracts with Gazprom have been strictly strictly respected. This logic also prevails for liquefied natural gas deliveries (LNGs) which continues as if nothing had happened.
We finance the war that we do not condemn.
I measure the consequences of a cut by the European Union of Russian gas imports on the savings of the twenty-seven. A double price shock and quantity would result from next winter. Even if for the next few months, our consumption would be ensured without difficulty thanks to the supplies of other countries by pipeline or by LNG for the LNG.
A sacrifice to do
It must be resigned to the status quo by considering that we do not have any alternative and that we can, despite sincere solidarity with respect to the Ukrainian people, pay more expensive our energy and take the risk of Do not heat up next winter? Or is not it necessary to ensure our own safety and to inflict a major setback to Vladimir Putin to change deeply and much more quickly than expected our energy model?
The reason as emotion leads us to make this choice and work as soon as possible. For France, the goal is within our reach since Russian gas represents 20% of our consumption.
The urgency is to negotiate additional volumes with different suppliers (Norway, Netherlands, Algeria and USA) and increase the unloading capacity of our LNG terminal.
And if we could not fully replace all the gas that comes from Russia, it would be worth limiting the demand. This is where our courage would be put to the test. Because it would be unavoidable to solicit the French so that they reduce their heating next winter. This effort could be called today. Remember, less than twelve months for a duration of twelve months represents 10 to 15 terawatt hours saved. I am convinced that our compatriots, aware of the threat that Russia is weighing on peace and anxious to address a gesture of friendship to the Ukrainian people whose suffering is a heartbreak, would be ready for this sacrifice.
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