Europe would need as much as four extra liquefied natural gas cargoes a day
to offset the lost natural gas supply from Russia through Ukraine,
LNG Intelligence reported Thursday, citing an executive from Total S.A. (TOT).
However, Europe would be able to drum up only
approximately 30 million cubic meters a day, or one LNG cargo every three days
or so, given logistics and supply constraints, the report cited Jean-Marc
Hosanski, Total's senior vice president for LNG, as saying.
Most of the roughly 10% volume flexibility typically provided in LNG contracts
is probably already being used, given that it's the peak demand season, he
adds.
Russia delivers
some 120 billion cubic meters a year of natural gas to Europe
through Ukraine,
and this would be equivalent to 120 standard LNG cargoes per month, twice the
volume of LNG actually imported by Europe in 2007, the
Total executive was cited as saying in the report.
Hosanski sees 5%-10% substitution by LNG as "a reasonable estimate"
of what could be attained, it said.