MOSCOW, Feb 16 ― Russian energy giant Gazprom yesterday announced a drop in its exports to Europe in 2020, when prices and demand in the energy industry collapsed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Gazprom, which includes Turkey in Europe, said its European exports fell by 12.1 per cent in 2020 year-on-year, down to 174.97 billion cubic metres compared to the 198.97 billion cubic metres it exported to Europe in 2019.

The decline nonetheless exceeds Gazprom's forecast for 2020, which had foreseen exports of 166.6 billion cubic metres to Europe last year.

The Russian producer derives a large part of its income from its European exports, particularly those that go to Western Europe.

Its main consumer is Germany, whose gas imports fell by 14 per cent in 2020 on the previous year.

While demand for gas was hit by the pandemic, Gazprom's plans to increase its exports to Europe have also been thwarted by uncertainty over the nearly completed Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline between Russia and Germany.

Work on the US$11 billion (RM44.4 billion) pipeline resumed in German waters in December after being suspended for nearly a year because of the threat of US sanctions.

The United States and several European countries including Poland take a dim view of the pipeline, arguing that it will increase the dependence of Germany and the European Union on Russia. ― AFP