The energy minister of Qatar, one of the world’s biggest gas exporters, predicted on Saturday that European countries would eventually resume importing Russian gas, saying the current market volatility would continue, AFP reported.

European countries have largely restricted their supplies of Russian gas since Moscow invaded Ukraine in February 2022, a conflict that rocked the global energy market.

“In my view, Russian gas will return to Europe,” although it now has a “much greater variety” of sources of supply, said Qatari Minister Saad Sherida al-Kaabi, who also heads QatarEnergy, a state-owned company. of the rich emirate of the Persian Gulf.

“Today, the Europeans say there is no problem,” but “everything gets fixed over time,” he added at an energy forum in Abu Dhabi.

According to the Russian energy giant, Gazprom’s gas exports to the European Union and Switzerland will fall by 55% in 2022, with Europe previously being its biggest market.

The wholesale price of natural gas in Europe fell this month to its lowest level since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, thanks to a mild winter that is keeping supplies intact, but analysts warn that the market is unpredictable.

“The situation will remain volatile for a certain period of time,” Saad Sherida al-Kaabi also warned, saying the stockpile problem would resurface in Europe next year.