There are projections that the Russia-Ukraine crisis can escalate to a conflict that could interrupt Russian gas supply to Europe.
In view of this, Shell Plc, one of the world’s top liquefied natural gas (LNG) traders has expressed readiness to deliver more natural gas to Europe.
Shell’s chief executive officer, Ben van Beurden noted that Europe, so far, has never really suffered significant disruptions from Russia even in very troubled geopolitical times.
According to Bloomberg, the United States and Europe are talking to major LNG importers in Asia, including Japan, South Korea, India, and even China to potentially send some of their gas supply to Europe in case the Russia-Ukraine crisis escalates into a conflict.
The U.S. Administration is also in talks with energy companies and major gas-producing countries globally about the potential for a large supply of natural gas to Europe in case Russian deliveries are interrupted.
In his submission, EU Energy Commissioner, Kadri Simson said “there is still spare capacity that can be used to receive additional gas supplies, in particular through LNG terminals”.
Investors King gathered that tensions between Ukraine and Russia, both former Soviet states, escalated in late 2013 over a landmark political and trade deal with the European Union.
A report by the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), sighted by Investors King, revealed that after a violent crackdown by state security forces unintentionally drew an even greater number of protesters and escalated the conflict, Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych fled the country in February 2014.
The report further revealed that in March 2014, Russian troops took control of Ukraine’s Crimean region, before formally annexing the peninsula after Crimeans voted to join the Russian Federation in a disputed local referendum.
Meanwhile, the tension between these two countries are at their highest in years, with a Russian troop build-up near the two nations’ borders spurring fears that Moscow could launch an invasion.