FRANKFURT (Reuters) - European gas suppliers will have to take a more proactive role in tapping into diverse supply sources in view of United States attempts to push its liquefied natural gas (LNG) into Europe, the CEO of German utility Uniper said on Tuesday.
Uniper is one of five western firms that have invested in Nord Stream 2, a Russian gas export pipeline to Europe, which latest U.S. sanctions related to Russia's activities in Crimea will make harder to realize.
"The core reason (for the sanctions) are strategic economic interests, meaning the targeted dominance of the U.S. in energy markets," Klaus Schaefer said in a speech prepared for a call with reporters on first-half earnings.
He said that European buyers needed to compete with those in Asia for LNG if they wanted to secure supply from the world market, where U.S. cargoes were some 50 percent more expensive compared with European references prices.
"Nobody wants to pay such a premium," he said.
He also said that European gas suppliers may look at new ways to produce synthetic gas from surplus renewable power.
Uniper is among companies experimenting with so-called wind gas, which could find its way into gas distribution networks via electrolysis and help make up for future natural gas shortfalls.