Qatar Threatens to Halt Gas Exports to Europe Over EU Due Diligence Law
July 27, Tehran (MNA) – In retaliation for the EU’s due diligence regulation on forced labour and environmental harm, Qatar has threatened to stop supplying gas.
After the United States and Australia, Qatar is the third-largest LNG exporter in the world, according to Reuters. Since Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, it has supplied 12% to 14% of Europe’s LNG.
Qatar is responding to the EU’s corporate sustainability due diligence directive (CSDDD), which mandates that larger companies operating in the EU identify and address human rights and environmental issues in their supply chains, according to a letter sent to the Belgian government on May 21 by Qatari Energy Minister Saad al-Kaabi.
“Put simply, if further changes are not made to CSDDD, the State of Qatar and QatarEnergy will have no choice but to seriously consider alternative markets outside of the EU for our LNG and other products, which offer a more stable and welcoming business environment,” the letter stated.
The letter was initially reported by the German newspaper Welt am Sonntag, but a representative for Belgium’s representation to the EU declined to comment.
According to a Commission spokeswoman who spoke to Reuters, the European Commission also received a letter from Qatar on May 13 stating that EU parliamentarians and nations are now negotiating revisions to the CSDDDD.
“It is now for them to negotiate and adopt the substantive simplification changes proposed by the Commission,” said a spokeswoman. Earlier this year, Brussels suggested amending the CSDDD to lessen its obligations.
Among other things, it would postpone its implementation until mid-2028 by a year and restrict the checks that businesses must perform on their supply chains. Businesses who don’t follow the rules risk fines of up to 5% of their worldwide sales. According to Qatar, the EU’s reforms have fallen short.
In the letter, Kaabi stated that the CSDDD’s mandate that businesses have a climate change transition plan in line with the Paris Agreement’s objective of limiting global warming from surpassing 1.5 degrees Celsius was of special relevance to Qatar.
Source: MEHR News
