EU Parliament committee supports quicker phase out of Russian gas

(Reuters) -The European Parliament's energy committee on Thursday supported proposals to speed up the EU's phase-out of Russian gas by a year.

Under the new proposal, imports of natural gas from Russia would be banned from the start of next year, with limited exceptions until January 1, 2027, for contracts that were concluded before June 17, 2025.

The draft ban will now move to the whole Parliament for approval, or amendments, and will then be negotiated with European Union member states.

The European Commission originally proposed in June a legally binding ban on EU imports of Russian gas and liquefied natural gas by the end of 2027.

But lead lawmakers on the issue in the Parliament proposed moving forward this deadline to January 1, 2027.

Diplomats from EU countries have said it is unlikely that governments will agree to bring forward the ban by a year, but that EU lawmakers could use this demand as leverage to secure other changes in the negotiations.

(Reporting by Bart Meijer. Editing by Mark Potter)