The Russia-EU energy relationship on trial
The meeting included members of the Bundestag, leading German energy experts, and representatives of German business associations. Introductory reports were given by Andrey Konoplyanik, former deputy minister of energy and current adviser for Gazprom bank, and Johannes Baur, general director of energy and international relations at the European Commission.
Mr. Konoplyanik pointed out that the Russians have accepted the EU’s liberalization policy. The Russian government and Gazprom are eager to negotiate constructively with the European Commission on how productive cooperation can be intensified, in spite of the disadvantages that Gazprom already experiences on the EU market.
Konoplyanik said that Russia understands the arguments of the Commission, which is concerned with enhancing competition on the EU market. Admittedly, the EU’s liberalization policy has resulted in a regionalization of the European energy market, which means considerable disadvantages for large energy companies due to ensuing restrictions. The EU, as Mr. Konoplyanik pointed out, does not take all the risks that energy supplying countries like Russia will have to face in EU markets into consideration. He believes that an update of the old energy charter could provide a new basis for EU-Russia relations.
Johannes Baur advocated for the EU’s liberalization package and stressed the potential benefits that the new regulations could have for Russian companies. He underlined the fact that the early warning system for energy relations between Russia and the EU is now functioning properly.
In the follow-up discussion, it was asked whether new gas conflicts between Russia and Ukraine could disrupt the EU’s energy supply. The experts did not see this as a possibility.