After intense negotiations in the European Parliament, with the European Commission and the member states in the Council, an agreement has been reached on the rules to phase out Russian gas imports. The Socialists and Democrats Group has played a key role in driving the negotiations on the ban, which will free Europeans from energy dependence on Russia.

The agreement establishes a phase-out for imports of Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) as of 1 January 2027, and for imports of natural gas in gaseous state via pipelines as of 30 September 2027. Thus, the ban will enter into force sooner compared to the initial proposal by the European Commission and compared to the position of the Council. The S&D Group welcomes the acceleration of this phase-out of Russian fossil fuels. Our conviction remains the same: it is thanks to energy sufficiency, energy efficiency and renewables that the EU will achieve real strategic autonomy.

The agreement also introduces penalties for failure to comply with the ban, including high floors for maximum penalties – one of the key priorities of the S&D Group – as the Commission initially did not include this provision. Moreover, thanks to the Parliament’s pressure – as demanded by the S&Ds – the possibility of suspending the ban is subject to significantly stricter conditions and only foreseen in the event of a gas supply emergency. In practice, never again will Russian gas flow in the EU.

Importantly, the Commission will release a statement committing to tabling, at the beginning of 2026, a legislative proposal to ban the import of Russian oil as soon as possible, but not later than by the end of 2027. This is a crucial win for our Group, which pushed strongly for phasing out not only gas but also oil imports from Russia.

The provisional agreement reached last night must still be formally approved by both the European Parliament and the Council.

Thomas Pellerin-Carlin, S&D negotiator on RePowerEU in the EP's committee on industry, research and energy, said:

“Europeans remember the increase in gas and electricity prices that we all experienced in 2021 and 2022. What has often been called an 'energy crisis' is actually a Russian gas shock. Russia indeed weaponised the EU's dependence on Russian gas.

“This regulation has a simple objective: never again will Russia be able to manipulate our energy market and put millions of jobs at risk, never again will Russia be able to increase the energy bill paid by all European families.”

Francisco Assis, S&D MEP negotiator on RePowerEU in the EP's committee on international trade, said:

“Protecting Europe’s stability and security remains our priority. Europe must put an end to all energy dependencies on Russia and ensure we do not remain vulnerable to a country that uses energy as a tool of coercion.

“The S&D Group welcomes the Commission’s commitment to present, at the beginning of 2026, a new regulation to phase out Russian oil. We stand ready for the next step: ending the import of Russian oil and oil products.”