Gas deliveries from Russia to Europe through the TurkStream pipeline rose at the start of the year, drawing attention to Europe’s increasing reliance on the southern corridor that remains for Russian supplies. According to estimates, average daily flows in January were noticeably higher than in the same period last year.
This increase follows the expiration of a long-standing transit agreement through Ukraine, which was not extended beyond January 2025. With that route now closed, Turkey has effectively become the only transit country for Russian pipeline gas entering Europe.
In total, shipments via TurkStream reached about 1.73 billion cubic meters in January 2026, compared with roughly 1.57 billion cubic meters a year earlier. Data from ENTSOG indicate that daily deliveries averaged 55.8 million cubic meters, up from 50.6 million cubic meters last year. Flows were also largely stable compared to December 2025, when volumes were around 56 million cubic meters per day.
Despite this recent uptick, overall Russian gas exports to Europe have declined sharply. In 2025, supplies fell by around 44% to about 18 billion cubic meters, marking the lowest level since the mid-1970s. This stands in stark contrast to the peak years of 2018 and 2019, when annual pipeline exports to Europe exceeded 175–180 billion cubic meters.
The January growth in TurkStream volumes therefore highlights more of a shift in routing than a true recovery in exports, as Russian gas deliveries to Europe are now concentrated on a single corridor after the loss of other transit routes.
