Despite Rising Tensions, Europe to Remain Russia's Main Gas Customer
Tatiana Mitrova, Head of the Oil & Gas Department at the Energy Research Institute in Moscow, joins Hughes Belin to analyse the consequences of troubled EU-Russia relations for energy trade.
Even though Mitrova believes that EU sanctions are “not seriously affecting operations in the Russian gas and oil industry”, she describes the current situation as a “perfect storm.” “All negative factors coincide” and can severely undermine gas trade between Russia and the European Union.
According to Mitrova these factors include: Russia’s decision to shift gas eastward, the newly issued European Energy Union strategy, the failure to resolve the South Stream dispute, as well as the difficult political and geopolitical climate.