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Brussels – Slovenia continues to rely on Russian gas imported via Austria, two years after the adoption of the EU’s plan to reduce dependence on Russian fossil fuels REPowerEU, notes the European Commission. Additionally, Slovenia is one of only five member states that have not reduced their gas consumption by 15 percent since August 2022, as agreed at the union level.
“Slovenia has taken measures to strengthen alternative supplies of natural gas, but in reality, it continues to rely on Russian gas imported through Austria,” it was written in Brussels.
Slovenia has also made a deal for gas supply from Algeria, and plans to acquire gas from the liquefied natural gas terminal on the Croatian island of Krk. However, the vast majority is still received from Austria, which purchases Russian gas.
One of the measures within the plan is also the reduction of consumption of this energy source, whereby the member states agreed on a voluntary reduction by 15 percent at the EU level.
From August 2022 to January this year, the union reduced gas consumption by 18 percent, with Denmark and Finland being the most successful.
Slovenia reduced its gas consumption by 10 percent. Only Poland, with an eight percent reduction, and Ireland, with a four percent reduction, were less successful. Malta was the only country that increased gas consumption.
Brussels presented the REPowerEU plan in mid-May 2022, about three months after the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Moscow, in fact, also used its energy resources for economic coercion of Europe.