Portugal is considering increasing its liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports from the US and Nigeria as part of a strategic move to phase out its reliance on Russian supplies, announced its Environment Minister Maria da Graca Carvalho.
In 2024, Portugal’s natural gas imports reached 49,141 gigawatt-hours (GWh), with LNG making up approximately 96% of this figure, according to REN, the operator of electricity and gas grids, reported Reuters.
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Nigeria was the source of 51% of these LNG imports, the US contributed roughly 40% and Russia supplied around 4.4%.
Russia accounted for 15% of Portugal’s LNG in 2021.
The EU imposed sanctions on Russian oil and gas imports via pipelines following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
However, these sanctions do not extend to LNG transported by sea into Europe.
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By GlobalDataDespite this, Portugal is actively seeking to diversify its energy sources to enhance security and independence.
“Portugal is now practically independent of Russian gas… but we want to reduce this figure further by importing more gas from Nigeria and the US,” Graca Carvalho told a panel at the World Economic Forum in Davos, reported economic website ECO.
US President Donald Trump has threatened the EU with tariffs if countries do not increase their purchases of US energy.
The Portuguese environment minister also called for greater cooperation between the 27 EU nations to ensure energy independence and security.
Meanwhile, Nigeria’s LNG trade appears to be increasing. The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) reported that the country produced 2.5 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of gas last year, generating approximately N8.6trn ($5.54bn) in revenue, reported Business Insider Africa.
The country produced 1.44tcf of associated gas and 1.06tcf of non-associated gas.
However, 192.89 billion standard cubic feet of gas was flared.
In contrast, 2.31tcf of gas was utilised in 2024, amounting to roughly $5.74bn when valued at $2.42 per million British thermal units.
