EU to exempt US, Qatari gas from extra checks under its Russian gas ban, draft shows

By Kate Abnett

BRUSSELS, Jan 28 (Reuters) - The European Union will exempt gas from key suppliers including the U.S. and Qatar from extra checks under its upcoming Russian gas ban, a draft European Commission document seen by Reuters showed.

EU countries gave their final sign-off this week to the bloc's legally-binding plan to phase out Russian gas imports by late 2027, allowing it to pass into law.

To enforce the ban, the EU will subject shipments of gas and liquefied natural gas from non-Russian countries to "prior authorisation" - meaning that companies must provide European customs authorities with proof of the gas's production country five days before it arrives in the EU.

However, that requirement will be waived for major existing suppliers and for countries where the EU deems the risk of Russian gas entering their exports to be low - based on factors such as whether the country has itself banned Russian gas or lacks import infrastructure that could allow Russian supplies into its network.

The countries granted this exemption will be the U.S., Norway, Qatar, Britain, Algeria and Nigeria, according to the draft document.

A European Commission spokesperson declined to comment on the draft, which could still change before it is published in the coming days.

Norway was the EU's top gas supplier in 2025, followed by the U.S. and then Russia, according to pipeline gas and LNG import data from the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis.

Norway supplied 89 billion cubic metres to the EU in 2025, versus 81 bcm from the U.S. and 37 bcm from Russia, the IEEFA said.

For comparison, former top supplier Russia sent 151 bcm of gas to the EU in 2021, the year before its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.