Europe proposes to ban coal imports from Russia

US blocks Russian debt payments 1:05 London (CNN Business) — Europe is planning a further blow to Russia’s economy with a new round of sanctions that include a ban on coal imports. Europe is also working on new sanctions on Russian oil. The measures were announced Tuesday by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and are subject to approval by the 27 member states of the European Union. The bloc has so far imposed four rounds of sanctions intended to punish Russian President Vladimir Putin and his government for ordering the invasion of Ukraine. The fifth round of sanctions come after the recent atrocities committed in Ukraine became known. The landscape of Bucha after the withdrawal of Russian troops 1:27 “We all saw the horrific images of Bucha and other areas recently left by Russian troops,” von der Leyen said in a statement. “These atrocities cannot and will not be left unanswered.” “We will impose an import ban on Russian coal worth 4 billion euros (US$4.4 billion) a year,” she said. If passed, the coal import ban would be the first European Union-coordinated embargo on the vast energy exports that drive Russia’s economy and generate hundreds of billions of dollars in revenue each year. The leaders of the European Union have so far been unable to agree on the Russian energy sector, due to the risk it poses to the region’s economy at a time of rising natural gas and fuel prices. But the mood seems to have changed this week. French President Emmanuel Macron said on Monday that he would support a complete ban on Russian oil and coal imports, and Germany indicated on Tuesday that he might support a coal ban. “Russia is waging a cruel and ruthless war in Ukraine, not only against its brave troops but also against its civilian population,” von der Leyen told reporters. “It is important to keep maximum pressure on Putin and the Russian government at this time.” Russia was the world’s third largest exporter of coal in 2020, behind Australia and Indonesia, according to the International Energy Agency. It is also the main exporter of thermal coal to the European Union, ahead of China and South Korea. European coal prices have already started to rise in anticipation of possible sanctions. Rotterdam coal futures, the regional benchmark, have more than doubled since the beginning of the year and are trading at about $295 a metric ton. “Sanctioning coal will make life much more difficult for European utilities, which consume a lot of Russian coal, but energy companies can deal with this, and politicians see more public acceptance of this, as it goes well with the general and accelerated green transition of the European Union,” Henning Gloystein, director of energy, climate and resources at Eurasia Group, told CNN Business. The fifth round of sanctions also includes a complete ban on transactions with Russia’s second largest bank, VTB, and three other lenders. Ships registered or operated by Russia will be banned from European Union ports, with exceptions for ships carrying energy, food and other types of humanitarian aid. Russian tankers use strategies to disappear from the radar 3:02Exports of technology and other sensitive equipment worth 10 billion euros ($11 billion), such as quantum computers and advanced semiconductors, would be banned. And EU countries will also block the import of products such as wood, cement, seafood and spirits worth US$6 billion. “But this is not all. We are working on additional sanctions, including on oil imports, and we are reflecting on some of the ideas put forward by member states, such as taxes or specific payment channels, such as an escrow account” added von der Leyen. Russian oil has already been banned by the United States and the United Kingdom, and a broader de facto embargo has been imposed, as banks, traders, shippers and insurance companies try to avoid falling under financial sanctions. According to the International Energy Agency, Russia may be forced to cap production by 3 million barrels a day from this month as it struggles to find buyers. — Anna Cooban contributed to this report.