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EU pays highest amount for Russian gas in nearly 1.5 years in May
In May 2026, the EU paid the highest amount for Russian pipeline gas and LNG in nearly a year and a half, totaling 1.5 billion euros, according to Eurostat data. France, Spain, and Belgium were among the largest buyers, while overall purchases in the first five months fell by 10%.
The European Union paid 1.5 billion euros for Russian pipeline gas and liquefied natural gas (LNG) in May 2026, the highest monthly amount since January 2025, according to Eurostat data cited by TASS. The total comprises 575 million euros for pipeline gas and 925 million euros for LNG, as reported by the Russian state news agency.
Coverage Comparison
TASS reported the figures in three separate articles, all drawing on Eurostat data and the agency's own calculations. The first article focused on the overall value of EU purchases, noting that between January and May, the EU bought Russian pipeline gas worth 2.4 billion euros and LNG worth 3.7 billion euros. Total purchases of Russian gas in that period fell by 10% to 6.1 billion euros.
A second article highlighted Hungary's role as the leading EU buyer of Russian pipeline gas, despite a 14% drop in its purchases in value terms. The third piece emphasized the record monthly payment, naming France, Spain, Belgium, Hungary, and Greece as the largest buyers of Russian gas.
All three reports noted that the TurkStream pipeline is now the only active route for Russian pipeline gas supplies to Europe.
Key Claims
In May 2026, the EU paid 1.5 billion euros for Russian gas, the highest level in nearly a year and a half, according to TASS.
Pipeline gas imports totaled 575 million euros, while LNG imports stood at 925 million euros.
Between January and May 2026, the EU imported Russian pipeline gas worth 2.4 billion euros, down from 2.8 billion euros a year earlier.
LNG purchases in the same period were 3.7 billion euros, compared with 4 billion euros a year earlier.
Overall EU purchases of Russian gas fell by 10% to 6.1 billion euros in the first five months of 2026.
The share of Russian LNG in total EU LNG imports was 22.3% in May, while Russian pipeline gas accounted for 15.2% of the EU's pipeline gas imports.
Norway led pipeline gas imports with a 30.8% share, followed by Algeria (27.2%), the UK (12.8%), and Russia (15.2% — the report lists Russia separately, but the figures imply a fourth place for the UK; TASS's data shows the UK at 12.8%).
Hungary was the top buyer of Russian pipeline gas, spending 1.1 billion euros in January–May, though its purchases fell by 14%.
In May, the largest buyers of Russian gas were France (369 million euros), Spain (305 million euros), Belgium (211 million euros), Hungary (204 million euros), and Greece (129 million euros).
TASS reported earlier that Russia increased gas exports to Europe via TurkStream by 6.5% year-on-year to 7.65 billion cubic meters in January–May.
How this outlet told it
TASS — English
Framing: EU purchases of Russian gas — Neutral
Facts Included:
EU purchased Russian pipeline gas worth 2.4 bln euros between January and May
EU purchased Russian LNG worth 3.7 bln euros between January and May
Total purchases of Russian gas by the EU fell by 10% in the reporting period
EU countries paid 925 mln euros for LNG from Russia in May
The share of Russian LNG in total liquefied gas imports by EU countries stood at 22.3% in May
Each row is one claim, attributed to the outlet whose wording states it most clearly. Confidence rates how directly the source text states the claim — explicit and unhedged rates high; hedged, pieced-together, or internally inconsistent statements rate lower. It does not measure whether the claim is true. Status counts the distinct outlets we found asserting it — so a single-source claim can still show high confidence, and a multi-source claim can show medium. Every one of those outlets is named beside the status, so you can check the count against the list. For claims extracted before we began storing that list, the row says so: it names the outlet the claim is quoted from and states that we have not recorded which outlets backed it. Outlets wrote at different times, so a figure that evolves — a casualty count, for example — can legitimately differ between rows; check the "as of" time next to each claim's source.
Claim
Confidence
Status
ClaimThe European Union purchased Russian pipeline gas worth 2.4 bln euros between January and May. The European Union also purchased Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) worth 3.7 bln euros between January and May.