The European Union and the United Kingdom’s reliance on natural gas imports have increased from 65% in 2010 to 80% in 2020, according to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA).

The strong reliance on gas imports and low quantities of gas in storage has played a key role in Europe’s gas and power crisis, which has seen energy bills skyrocket in recent months. According to EIA data, pipeline natural gas imports into the EU plus the UK region accounted for 74% of all-natural gas imports in 2020, with LNG accounting for the remaining 26%.

Russia is the largest pipeline gas provider, supplying almost a third of the gas consumed by the UK and the EU’s 27 member states.

Despite the construction of new pipelines, imports from Norway, which is not a member of the EU, averaged around 9 Bcf/d between 2010 and 2020, as new fields in the Norwegian Continental Shelf’s the Barents Sea were insufficient to offset declines from mature fields in the North Sea, according to the EIA.

According to the offshore industry association OGUK, the UK, which is a major European natural gas producer with Norway, may see gas production drop by 75% by 2030 unless new offshore fields are permitted and developed.

The UK will be more exposed to crises, such as the current one between Russia and Ukraine, if additional investment in new gas resources in the North Sea is not made, according to the industry association.