Changes

==Relevance==

Domestic gas production in North West Europe is declining. EU countries face three options: cutting back on consumption, develop their shale gas resources or increasing imports. Given that the reform of the EU’s emission trading system (ETS) will lead to a coal-to-gas switching in the electricity sector, natural gas will continue to play an important role in European energy demand. Additionally, renewable energies will show strong growth but, despite their centrality in switching to a green energy market, will still need to be complemented by gas<ref>[http://www.baltic-course.com/eng/analytics/?doc=124714 The Baltic Course analytics]</ref>. In 2016, Europe imported 53.5% of its energy needs<ref>[http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php/Energy_production_and_imports Eurostat: Energy Production Statistics 2016]</ref>. Therefore the EU is working to develop a new foreign policy which will further secure gas supply in the future.

==Background==

About one quarter of all the energy used in the EU is natural gas, and many EU countries import nearly all their energy supplies, such as the United Kingdom (45.5%), France (46.1%), Germany (61.4%), Spain (72.9%) and Italy (75.9%)<ref>[http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/documents/2995521/7150363/8-04022016-AP-EN.pdf/c92466d9-903e-417c-ad76-4c35678113fd Eurostat newsrelease: Energy Dependency in the EU 2016]</ref> . Some of these countries are also heavily reliant on a single source or a single transport route for the majority of their gas<ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/23/world/europe/23iht-pipeline.4.7231553.html The New York Times "Gaxprom plans to re-route controversial European pipeline" 2007]</ref> . Yet, in 2017 17% of the global population lacks access to electricity<ref>[https://www.iea.org/topics/energypoverty/ International Energy Agency (IEA): Energy access and Energy poverty]</ref>. Energy poverty in Europe is still a relevant issue, as it affects nearly 11% of the EU population. Due to rising energy prices, low income and poor energy efficient homes, particularly prevalent in Central Eastern and Southern Europe (notably <ref>[https://iaee.org/en/publications/newsletterdl.aspx?id=226 International Association for Energy Economics: Energy Poverty: the Bulgarian Case 2014]</ref> and Greece<ref>[http://www.housingeurope.eu/blog-913/energy-poverty-in-greece Housing Europe: Energy Poverty in Greece 2017]</ref>), around 54 million people in Europe cannot afford to adequately heat their homes at an affordable cost<ref>[https://ec.europa.eu/energy/en/news/energy-poverty-may-affect-nearly-11-eu-population European Commission (Energy): Energy may affect nearly 11% of the EU population, 2015]</ref>.

The EU countries need to be prepared in order to manage gas supply disruptions if a crisis occurs both concerning infrastructure and geopolitical tensions. For the time being, Russia remains Europe’s largest gas supplier, followed by Saudi Arabia and Norway<ref>[http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php/Energy_production_and_imports Eurostat: Energy production and imports 2016]</ref>. The high level of mutual dependence involving the two sides may be the key for a future settlement: the European Union relies on Gazprom (the only producer and exporter of liquefied gas (LNG) in Russia) for about a third of its natural gas supply, and Russia earns significant revenue from selling gas to Europe<ref>[http://www.gazprom.com/ Gazprom official website]</ref>.

==Areas of conflict==

The challenges that the European Union and its Member States have to face in securing gas supply concern mainly infrastructure and geopolitical tensions. On one side, infrastructure failure can cause disruptions along gas transport routes and, on the other, supplies can be endangered by political disputes<ref>[https://ec.europa.eu/energy/en/topics/imports-and-secure-supplies/secure-gas-supplies European Commission (Energy): Secure gas supply, 2017]</ref>.