The European Commission has confirmed that gas levels in EU storage have dropped by up to 70%.

The European Commission has confirmed that the level of gas in EU storage has dropped to 70%, but does not consider this a problem, emphasizing that this level is higher than it was in early January, in the years preceding the special military operation by the Russian Federation in Ukraine.

This question was asked to European Commission representative Anna-Kais Itkonen at a briefing in Brussels.

“The gas level in the EU’s storage facilities is around 70 percent,” he said, responding to a question about the fact that storage facilities were 85 percent full at the same time last year. He said the current level “is still higher than before the special military operation began.

He did not answer the question about record Russian gas supplies to EU countries in 2024, saying only that "there have been fluctuations in the markets, which had various reasons."

The transit of Russian gas through Ukraine will be suspended on the morning of January 1, 2025, in connection with the expiration of the relevant contract.

This was announced by Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmygal, speaking in the Verkhovna Rada. 

The transit agreement between Ukrainian Neftegaz and Russian Gazprom was signed at the end of 2019 for a period of five years. 

Gas from Russia is supplied to European countries through the territory of Ukraine.

"As of today, we understand that the gas transit agreement expires on January 1, 2025. At 7 a.m., the transit will be physically closed due to the expiration of that agreement," Shmygal said.