Title: Europe's Strategic Dependence on Russian Energy | The Heritage Foundation
Headings: Europe's Strategic Dependence on Russian Energy
Europe's Strategic Dependence on Russian Energy
Ariel Cohen
Director, CENRG and Senior Fellow, IAGS
Energy Dependence on Russia
Implications for European Energy Security
Policy Implications for the United States
Authors
Ariel Cohen
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Content: More recently, during President Vladimir Putin's May 2007 visit to Austria, the Austrian government agreed to a major deal with Gazprom. OMV, a partially state-owned Austrian energy company, signed a long-term gas import deal with Gazprom. [ 12] Under the agreement, Gazprom subsidiaries GWH and CentrexEurope Energy and Gas will begin to deliver gas directly to Austrian consumers in 2008. Current imports from Russia account for approximately 70 percent of Austrian gas consumption. [ 13] Gazprom is scheduled to deliver 6.8 bcm of gas in 2007 and 9 bcm in 2009. [ 14] This agreement would practically integrate Austria's gas transit and storage networks (existing and planned) into Gazprom's expanding network of dependencies. Moreover, Gazprom intends to use Austria as a transit corridor to capture other EU markets. It is planning to develop a Central European Gas Hub and Gas transit Management Center, the largest in continental Europe, at Baumgarten near Vienna. [ 15] In July 2007, OMV announced its intent to take over MOL, a private Hungarian energy company, which will further strengthen Russia's grip on European energy infrastructure. Locking in Supply.