At a press conference yesterday, Qatari Energy Minister Saad al-Kaabi stated that the energy crisis in Europe is not a result of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict but a result of EU policy.
In other words, the tough legislation against gas and oil exploration out of climate change considerations has led to a decline in investment in the development of new fields. His statements are also backed up by data: Natural gas production on the continent has fallen by about 50% in the decade ended in 2020 compared to the previous decade.
With the decline in production there was an increase in imports and especially from Russia which made the gas supply a political tool. When political tensions began last year and Russia lowered the quantities supplied Europe turned to gas from the US. European imports of Russian gas fell to 10.7 billion cubic feet per day last year, compared to 11.8 and 14.1 billion cubic feet per day, in 2020 and 2019, respectively.
Although gas exports from Norway to Europe increased from 10.4 billion cubic feet per day in 2020, to 11.1 billion cubic feet per day last year, it was not enough to offset the decline in Russian gas imports.