A Toxic Dependency: Europe-US Gas

The report details how the EU's strategy to diversify energy supplies has led to an increased reliance on US LNG, which is expected to reach up to 80% of European imports by 2030. This demand fuels infrastructure expansion in the US Gulf Coast and Permian Basin, resulting in ecosystem destruction, hazardous living conditions for residents, and significant methane emissions. The text highlights the role of Italian entities, including the bank Intesa Sanpaolo and energy companies like Eni and Edison, in financing and purchasing this gas, while noting legal disputes over delivery obligations and the environmental 'sacrifice zones' created by relentless extraction.

• The European Union is replacing its dependence on Russian fossil fuels with a reliance on US liquefied natural gas (LNG), with the US already providing more than half of Europe's LNG imports and this share projected to reach up to 80 per cent by 2030.
• In the US Gulf Coast, specifically between Texas and Louisiana, LNG export infrastructure is expanding rapidly, including the Calcasieu Pass 2 (CP2) mega-project, a 28-billion-dollar development by Venture Global.
• The expansion of LNG facilities in Cameron Parish, Louisiana, has caused environmental damage, including the destruction of thousands of oysters due to mud deposits during terminal construction.
• The Permian Basin in Texas is characterized by extreme industrialization and pollution, including hidden methane emissions and the presence of naturally occurring radioactive materials (NORM) in wastewater reservoirs like Lake Boehmer.
• In 2024, gas prices at the Waha Hub in West Texas fell below zero for a significant part of the year because production exceeded pipeline capacity, forcing producers to pay to offload excess gas.
• Italian financial and energy institutions are heavily involved in US LNG; Intesa Sanpaolo contributed approximately 3.8 billion dollars to LNG expansion between 2021 and 2023, and Eni signed a 20-year contract in July 2025 to purchase 2 million tonnes of gas annually from Venture Global.
• European energy companies, including Edison, Repsol, Shell, and BP, have entered international arbitration against Venture Global because the company sold LNG on the spot market during the commissioning phase instead of fulfilling long-term contracts.

APA

Manes, L. (2026). A Toxic Dependency: Europe-US Gas. Green European Journal. https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/a-toxic-dependency-europe-us-gas/

Chicago

Manes, Luca. A Toxic Dependency: Europe-US Gas. Green European Journal, 2026. https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/a-toxic-dependency-europe-us-gas/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Manes |first1=Luca |title=A Toxic Dependency: Europe-US Gas |publisher=Green European Journal |date=31 March 2026 |url=https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/a-toxic-dependency-europe-us-gas/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{manes2026toxic, author = {Manes, Luca}, title = {{A Toxic Dependency: Europe-US Gas}}, institution = {Green European Journal}, year = {2026}, month = mar, url = {https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/a-toxic-dependency-europe-us-gas/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }