Supplies of Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) to the European Union hit a record high in January, even as the bloc prepares to fully ban Russian gas imports from 2027.

EU imports of Russian LNG reached 2.276 billion cubic meters in January, slightly above the level recorded in December 2025 and up from 2.05 billion cubic meters in January 2025, according to calculations by TASS based on data from the European analytical center Bruegel, The Caspian Post reports.

LNG supplies from the American direction-primarily the United States and Trinidad and Tobago-rose by 18% month on month to 8 billion cubic meters. Deliveries from Africa totaled about 772 million cubic meters in January, while supplies from the Middle East amounted to 571 million cubic meters.

Overall, Europe imported 12.2 billion cubic meters of LNG in January, according to Bruegel data. This represents a 1.3% increase compared to December 2025 and a 6% rise year on year.

On January 26, the Council of the European Union formally approved a complete ban on Russian LNG supplies to the EU starting January 1, 2027, as well as a ban on Russian pipeline gas effective September 30, 2027. The regulation is set to enter into force following its publication on February 2, 2026.

Despite the January surge, Russian LNG deliveries to the EU declined by 5.6% over the course of 2025, totaling 20.3 billion cubic meters. In overall gas supplies to EU countries last year, Russia ranked fourth with 38 billion cubic meters, behind Norway, the United States, and Algeria.