France will still receive Russian gas in coming days: press
The French energy minister Agnes Pannier-Runacher expects Russian gas flows into her country to continue over coming days, but said the exact amount delivered will vary depending on the supply in neighbouring European markets, Reuters reported June 23.
Pipeline flow from Germany to France was suspended last week due to reduced gas flows through the Nord Stream pipeline from Russia to Germany. Reuters reported that smaller Russian gas volumes were being delivered into France, but did not specify how much the country was receiving.
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Pannier-Runacher said the reductions would depend on gas transit pipelines that pass through Belgium and Germany, but insisted France could do without Russian gas "in absolute terms", thanks largely to spare LNG capacity in Spain that could be tapped for extra supply. France also has four large-scale domestic LNG import terminals, at Fos Tonkin, Montoir, Fos Cavaou and Dunkerque.
Several connections run from Belgium to France with each pipeline serving a distinct French regions. With Nord Stream currently supplying as much as 60% less gas than anticipated, it seems possible the gas flows down each Belgian interconnector could be significantly impacted.
France's energy security without Russian gas will also depend on LNG transit remaining stable from all suppliers – including Spain, Algeria and Norway – and how the weather plays out as Europe enters the coming winter demand season.
Paris is making headway on its EU gas storage commitments, which require France to hold 80% of its gas storage capacity by November 1, Pannier-Runacher added. France held around 59% of its capacity as of June 23, with 53.8 TWh held in its Storegny facility, and a further 20.8 TWh at its Terega storage plant.
"We are also continuing to call for gas through our LNG terminals and through Spain, which exports a lot of LNG from its LNG terminals, which explains why we are ahead of schedule in filling our strategic storage," Pannier-Runacher said.