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The European Council and the European Parliament have agreed on a provisional deal to phase out Russian natural gas imports by 2027.
“The regulation introduces a legally binding, stepwise prohibition on both liquefied natural gas (LNG) and pipeline gas imports from Russia, with a full ban from the end of 2026 and autumn 2027 respectively,” a statement issued by the council on Wednesday explained.
The provisional agreement aims to achieve a “resilient” and “independent” EU energy market.
“The co-legislators confirmed that imports of Russian pipeline gas and LNG will be prohibited from six weeks after entry into force of the regulation, while maintaining a transition period for existing contracts,” the statement further said.
The regulation requires all member states to submit national diversification plans detailing how they will diversify gas supplies and what challenges they expect, with the aim of ending all Russian gas imports within the deadlines.
“At the same time, the agreement strengthens the Commission’s oversight by requiring member states to notify the Commission within one month of the regulation’s entry into force whether they have Russian gas supply contracts or national legal bans in place,” the statement added.
The council and parliament kept the “suspension clause,” which allows the regulation to be temporarily paused if sudden events threaten the energy supply of one or more member states.
Rules for when the commission can lift the import ban have also been tightened, limiting it to strictly necessary cases, situations where a member state has declared an emergency, and only for a short period and for short-term supply contracts.
The provisional deal awaits approval by the council and parliament before it can be formally adopted.
Transition
The ban is a central part of the EU’s REPowerEU plan, designed to reduce reliance on Russian energy after Moscow’s weaponisation of gas supplies.
Denmark’s Climate Minister Lars Aagaard called it “a major step toward ending EU dependence on Russian gas and safeguarding energy security.”
“It shows that we are committed to strengthening our security and safeguarding our energy supply,” he added.
Short-term contracts signed before June 17 2025, according to the press release, will face liquified natural gas (LNG) bans from April 25 2026 and pipeline restrictions from June 17 2026.
Long-term LNG contracts will be prohibited from January 1st 2027, and pipeline deals from September 30 2027, or November 1st at the latest.
Existing agreements may be amended only for narrow operational purposes, ensuring the ban does not allow increased gas volumes from Russia.
A prior authorisation system will oversee imports, with exemptions for major gas-exporting countries or those restricting Russian gas, monitored by the European Commission.
