France increases gas imports from Russia

From January 1 to September 13, 2016, Russian gas exports to France increased by 27.3 percent over the same period last year.
In total, during this period, France purchased up to 8 billion cubic meters of gas. However, experts doubt that the gas is intended only for the local market. Due to the warm weather and the absence of problems with supplies from other directions, it would seem that the French should not be interested in purchasing additional volumes of Russian gas.

The explanation for this growth can be rather prosaic. The gas was actually bought, but it is intended for other customers. Experts indicate Ukraine as the main recipient.

Kiev has been buying gas outside of Russia for almost a year. Kiev refused to buy gas from its eastern neighbor, including due to inflated prices for raw materials. But its own demand still makes it necessary to import several billion cubic meters of gas. The raw material comes from Western companies and traders, probably also from the French.

Gazprom said the company increased its gas exports to countries outside Europe by 10.4 percent on an annualized basis, although the winter was mild.