Will Russian gas ever return?

Views on the longer-term future of the pariah state’s gas resources are divergent

Russian pipeline gas is unlike Russian oil in that reduced volumes to Europe cannot simply be diverted to other destinations, owing to the logistical constraints of moving the commodity. So, once eastern routes to China are maxed out, supply not delivered west is lost to the global market. The EU’s current strategy is to reduce its reliance on Russian gas as quickly as possible, while committing to phasing out such supplies entirely by 2027. But the Putin regime’s appetite to weaponise gas deliveries to try to break European unity on opposition to its murderous Ukraine invasion has outstripped even its former largest customer’s timetable for weaning itself off Russian supply. This disconnect