Lithuania has stopped importing gas from Russia, the Ministry of Energy announced on Saturday night.
The ministry said the country’s gas network had been operating without Russian gas imports since the beginning of the month. This is confirmed by data from the Lithuanian network operator which shows that no gas was imported through the interconnection between Lithuania and Belarus on 2 April.
“We are the first EU country among Gazprom’s supply countries to become independent of Russia’s gas supply, and this is the result of a long-term coherent energy policy and timely infrastructure decisions,” said Energy Minister Danyus Crevis.
All of Lithuania’s gas needs will now be met through liquefied natural gas, via the terminal in the port city of Klaipeda. Lithuania commissioned the vessel in early 2015 to reduce its dependence on Russian gas imports. Three large deliveries of liquefied natural gas are now to arrive at the floating facility there each month.
The ministry said gas would continue to flow through the country to the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad, regardless of the import cut. Lithuania borders Kaliningrad and Belarus, an ally of Russia.
In March, the Lithuanian parliament called on the government to stop importing and consuming Russian energy as soon as possible as part of the war in Ukraine. Parliamentary figures show that Lithuania buys more than 3 billion euros ($ 3.3 billion) worth of oil, gas and electricity from Russia each year.
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