Qatar has threatened to halt vital gas supplies to the European Union if member states strictly implement a new directive on corporate sustainability due diligence, Qatari Energy Minister Saad al-Kaabi told the Financial Times.

According to Saad al-Kaabi, if any EU member state imposes fines on the emirate on the scale set out in the corporate sustainability due diligence directive, Doha will halt exports of liquefied natural gas to the bloc, according to Agerpres.

The directive, approved in May this year, requires major companies operating in the EU to check whether their supply chains use forced labour or cause environmental damage and take action if necessary. The provisions include fines of up to 5% of a company’s global annual revenue.

“If I lose 5% of my income from doing business with Europe, I will not export to Europe. This is not a bluff,” Saad al-Kaabi told the Financial Times. “5% of QatarEnergy’s income is 5% of Qatar’s income. This is people’s money. I cannot lose that much and no one will accept losing that much.” Kaabi, who is also the CEO of state-owned QatarEnergy, said the EU should thoroughly review the sustainability due diligence directive. Kaabi also said the emirate was not concerned about US President-elect Donald Trump’s promise to lift a cap on natural gas exports. Qatar is one of the world’s largest exporters of liquefied natural gas and has become an increasingly important supplier to Europe after energy market turmoil caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. As European countries have started to turn away from Russian gas, QatarEnergy has signed long-term LNG supply agreements with Germany, France, Italy and the Netherlands. Qatar plans to increase its liquefaction capacity to 142 million tonnes per year by 2027, up from 77 million tonnes currently.

Kaabi said the corporate sustainability due diligence directive would affect all of Qatar’s exports to Europe, including fertilizers and petrochemicals, and could also affect investment decisions by the sovereign wealth fund, the Qatar Investment Authority.

However, Kaabi stressed that QatarEnergy would not break its LNG supply contracts but would consider legal options if it was hit with large fines. “I will not accept being fined. I will stop sending gas to Europe,” Kaabi said. However, Kaabi suggested there might be room for compromise if the fines were only applied to revenues generated in Europe, rather than global revenues.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen promised last month to propose an omnibus directive that would relax requirements set out in a number of EU laws, including the due diligence directive.