The European Commission, the executive branch of the European Union (EU), signed a memorandum of understanding with the government of Azerbaijan on Monday to substantially increase the nation’s gas exports to Europe—a step taken as the thirty-member bloc seeks alternative sources of natural gas to replace shortfalls from Russia following its invasion of Ukraine in late February.

The memorandum of understanding, signed between European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and Azeri president Ilham Aliyev, would double the EU’s imports of natural gas from Azerbaijan to twenty billion cubic meters per year by 2027, with most of the gas transferred via the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline from Azerbaijan through Turkey, Greece, and Albania into Italy and the rest of Europe.

Both leaders praised the memorandum after the signing, with von der Leyen telling a press conference that Baku was “a crucial energy partner for us that has always been reliable.” The president claimed that Azeri exports would increase from eight billion cubic meters per year, their current level, to twelve billion cubic meters by 2023, which she added would “help compensate for cuts in supplies of Russian gas and contribute significantly to Europe’s security of supply.”

Aliyev concurred with von der Leyen’s remarks, adding that energy security was “more important than ever before” in the modern world.

“Long-lasting, predictable, and very reliable cooperation between [the] EU and Azerbaijan in the field of energy is a big asset,” he added, emphasizing that the close energy partnership between Baku and Brussels could lead to greater political cooperation in other areas.

Europe’s push to secure alternative sources of natural gas is increasingly perceived as a race to fill the bloc’s stockpiles before winter sets in, temperatures drop, and demand increases for gas heating. International Energy Agency director Fatih Birol warned on Monday that the EU would not succeed in replacing Russian sources of energy altogether by winter and should instead attempt to cut demand to the greatest extent possible before the temperature drops.

“It is categorically not enough to just rely on gas from non-Russian sources,” Birol wrote. “These supplies are simply not available in the volumes required.”

Although the European Union committed to banning Russian oil imports by the end of 2022, it has avoided a full ban on Russian natural gas. Moscow, however, has begun to restrict gas exports to European countries perceived as “unfriendly,” cutting off supplies to Poland and Bulgaria earlier in the summer. It also temporarily suspended shipments to Germany via the Nord Stream pipeline, allegedly to complete maintenance work, and it remains unclear if those transfers will resume in the fall.

Trevor Filseth is a current and foreign affairs writer for the National Interest.

Image: Reuters.