The European Union has announced a plan to end its dependence on Russian natural gas by 2030 in light of the country's invasion of Ukraine.

The EU's executive arm, the European Commission, unveiled the plan on Tuesday.

The commission said the bloc can reduce its demand for Russian gas by two-thirds before the end of this year. It proposed buying more from countries such as Qatar and the United States, speeding up the rollout of renewable energy and replacing gas in heating and power generation.

It also said these measures can cut gas use equivalent to the volume imported from Russia last year.

But the commission warned that gas storage should be significantly increased to prepare for the next winter.

It said it intends to present by April draft legislation that requires gas storage across the EU to be filled to at least 90 percent of capacity by October each year.

Currently, storage is at less than 30 percent of capacity.

The committee's Executive Vice-President for the European Green Deal, Frans Timmermans, indicated that member states will be allowed to take steps such as regulating electricity prices to help mitigate the impact of surging energy prices on low-income consumers.

Russian natural gas accounted for 45 percent of the gas the EU imported last year, but the country's invasion of Ukraine has raised concerns about continuing that level of dependence.

Source: NHK