Russia wary of EU energy plan

MOSCOW, Nov. 20 (UPI) -- Russian gas monopoly Gazprom and other firms may revise their export strategies for Europe and plans for pipeline arteries following an EU energy plan.

The European Commission last week released its Energy Security and Solidarity Action Plan, which calls for greater reliance on domestic resources. With Russia as the top gas supplier to the European Union and the second-largest oil exporter, energy majors may have to recast their outlook, the Russian daily newspaper Kommersant reported Thursday.

The European plan calls for a 20 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, a 20 percent increase in use of renewable resources and a 20 percent improvement in energy efficiency over the course of the next decade.

Alexander Medvedev, the deputy chief of Gazprom, told a delegation at a gas conference Wednesday that the EU strategy may force Russia to look at other markets.

"In 2020, according to the International Energy Agency, the EU and Turkey will import roughly 3.5 trillion cubic feet of liquefied natural gas as well as the pipeline gas in the amount of 17 trillion cubic feet," he said. "But the new energy policy of EU provides for abrupt reduction in energy import."