BRUSSELS, Jan. 26 (Xinhua) -- The Council of the European Union (EU) on Monday gave a final approval to a ban on imports of Russian pipeline gas and liquefied natural gas (LNG) into the EU, with a full ban entering into force from January 2027 for LNG and from the autumn of 2027 for pipeline gas.
The prohibition on importing Russian pipeline gas and LNG will take effect six weeks after the regulations enter into force, while existing contracts will be given a transition period to wind down. The regulation will enter into force one day after it is published in the EU's Official Journal, according to the press release.
Before authorising gas to enter the EU, national authorities will have to verify the country where the gas was produced, a measure aimed at preventing circumvention.
The regulation sets out tough penalties for breaches, including maximum fines of at least 2.5 million euros (2.97 million U.S. dollars) for individuals and, for companies, 40 million euros, or at least 3.5 percent of worldwide annual turnover, or three times the estimated transaction turnover.
EU countries must submit national diversification plans by March 1, 2026, and identify challenges in replacing remaining Russian gas.
Since the onset of the Russia-Ukraine war, energy prices across Europe have surged. The Council said that if the security of supply is seriously threatened, the European Commission may suspend the ban for up to four weeks following a declared emergency.
In recent years, the EU has sharply reduced its imports of Russian oil and gas. Russian oil fell to below 3 percent of the bloc's total oil imports in 2025, but Russian gas still made up an estimated 13 percent of EU gas imports last year, worth more than 15 billion euros annually, according to the release.
The Commission also plans to propose legislation to phase out Russian oil imports by the end of 2027, the release said. (1 euro = 1.19 U.S. dollar) ■