Germany’s $10bn gas bill shows perks of close Russia ties

Bloomberg

Are Berlin’s close energy ties with Moscow paying off? Data from Russia’s Federal Customs Service shows they might be after Germany paid less for natural gas from the world’s largest exporter than most other buyers. Only the UK, which produces most of its own gas, had lower import costs among the biggest offtakers, according to the figures obtained by Bloomberg and detailed in the chart below.
Chancellor Angela Merkel has worked to strengthen the energy relationship with Russia, bucking US pressure to punish Vladimir Putin’s interference in Syria and elections across the west. Germany has backed projects such as Gazprom PJSC’s Nord Stream 2 pipeline, which some other European nations and the US have opposed because it would further increase Russia’s influence in the region.
“Germany is Europe’s biggest gas market, and its traders did a good job in renegotiating prices,” said James Henderson, director of the natural gas research program at the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies. While the lower rates may reflect strong diplomatic links, they also show “that Gazprom can be flexible if it needs to compete in Europe,” he said.
Germany gets more than half its gas from Russia, at a cost of more than $10 billion last year.