BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 25. In February 2024, Greece made a significant increase in its purchases of Russian pipeline gas, paying the highest amount in the last two years, according to Eurostat data, Trend reports.
The total value of Russian pipeline gas imports by European Union countries in February reached 582 million euros, with Hungary and Greece being the largest buyers. Greece alone accounted for 227 million euros of the total, while Hungary purchased 263.5 million euros worth of Russian gas.
At the same time, Italy reduced its imports of Russian gas by 22%, spending just 71 million euros. Meanwhile, Slovakia's payments for Russian gas hit a historic low, amounting to just 141,000. However, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico clarified that this decrease does not signal a halt in gas supplies. On the contrary, the volume of Russian gas flowing through the "Turkish Stream" pipeline to Slovakia has significantly increased.
Eurostat’s figures also revealed that in the first two months of 2024, the EU spent a total of 1.4 billion euros on Russian gas imports, compared to 1 billion euros during the same period in the previous year.
This shift in purchasing patterns highlights the ongoing fluctuations in the European energy market, as countries adjust their strategies in response to geopolitical and economic factors.