The Netherlands is no longer dependent on coal, oil products and crude oil from Russia and now complies with sanctions which were agreed within in the EU following the invasion of Ukraine, energy minister Rob Jetten said on Friday.

Gas was not covered by the sanctions and the Netherlands still imports quantity of gas from Russia, Jetten said. However, the Netherlands is no longer dependent on Russian gas, because it has increased its own imports of liquid natural gas, which is brought in by ship.

‘We continue to work hard to meet our gas needs,’ he said. ‘This includes making it possible to import more LNG from different and stable regions, making sure gas storage facilities are kept full, organizing gas purchases at a European level and saving energy.’

Demand for gas was also reduced by the decision to allow coal-fired power stations to operate at full capacity for a time, the ministry said.

Some 60% of the Russian state’s income derives from fossil fuel sales, the minister said. Since the sanctions were brought in last year, Russia has switched its focus to the Asian markets, which has reduced the impact of sanctions, along with the higher oil prices.