Crisis in Ukraine: what if France were to be deprived of Russian gas?

Maud Descamps, edited by Manon Fossat 7:37 a.m., February 24, 2022, modified at 7:37 a.m., February 24, 2022

Will our gas bill skyrocket again?

The question arises with the Russian offensive led by Vladimir Putin in Ukraine.

Much of the gas that heats Europeans comes from Russia.

Berlin has announced the suspension of the commissioning of the huge Northstream 2 gas pipeline which links Russia to Germany, assuming a possible price spike.

So should we expect a gas shortage in France?

Europe inevitably impacted

In the medium term, there will be no shortage of gas in France, firstly because we have strategic stocks, ie enough for 90 days.

This was assured by the Minister of Ecological Transition Barbara Pompili on Wednesday at the National Assembly.

Secondly, we have three entry points on our coasts to import liquefied gas from Norway – our main supplier – from Algeria or even from the United States. 

>> Find the morning of the day in replay and podcast here

But it is at the level of Europe that we must worry.

Because if the Russian gas represents only 17% of our imports in France, in Germany, it is 50%, even 60%.

And there are no alternatives, as energy specialist Pierre Terzian explains.

"The volumes of gas exported by Russia to Ukraine are absolutely huge. We are talking about 150 to 160 billion cubic meters per year. So it would take years and possibly decades to develop reserves in other countries. and bring them to Europe," he said. 

We must therefore expect a surge in prices.

The experts are indeed unanimous: it is inevitable.

Prices have already started to shoot up.

In France, some consumers are protected by the price shield set up by the government.

But businesses could take the full brunt of this increase.

This would immediately impact their competitiveness.