Poland poised to bolster Ukraine's power amid Slovak threat
Bloomberg reported on Sunday, citing a senior Polish official, that Poland is ready to increase its electricity exports to Ukraine if Slovakia's Prime Minister Robert Fico follows through on his threats and cuts off power supplies to the country.
According to the official quoted by Bloomberg, Poland is prepared to ramp up domestic power production to offset potential shortages in Ukraine's power system if the Slovak authorities take such actions.
Fico threatened on Friday to cut power supplies to Ukraine if Kyiv follows through on its statements about halting the transit of Russian gas to Slovakia after the New Year. Ukraine has already announced that it does not plan to extend the contract for transporting Russian gas through its territory to Europe, which expires on December 31.
As highlighted by Bloomberg, almost three years after Russia initiated its full-scale conflict with Ukraine, Slovakia remains reliant on cheap gas supplies from Gazprom, complicating efforts to reduce the EU's dependence on Russian energy resources.
"The clock is ticking on the flow of Russian gas through Ukraine to Europe, which is set to end on December 31 with the current agreement's expiration," Bloomberg notes. It adds that while Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky has consistently stated that he will not permit the transit of gas that benefits the Kremlin's war machine from January, he has indicated that he would be open to transporting fuel from countries other than Russia if the European Commission requests it.
Russia attacks Ukraine's energy infrastructure
Since March, Russia has intensified attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure, significantly reducing the country's ability to produce electricity and leading to power outages. Ukraine is highly dependent on energy imports from the EU, including from Slovakia, in this context.
Slovakia continues to receive Russian crude oil through the Druzhba pipeline, which passes through Ukraine. Kyiv could halt these supplies if Slovakia ceases energy exports, another person familiar with the situation told Bloomberg on Saturday.
Bloomberg also notes that the EU aims to phase out fossil fuel imports from Russia by 2027; however, gas is not included in the sanctions the bloc has implemented against Moscow since the invasion in February 2022. This means that companies can still strike deals and continue to import, as long as these agreements comply with existing EU regulations.
