Gazprom workers on Russia’s Yamal Peninsula.
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Russia’s gas supplies to Eastern Europe look highly uncertain after the country’s state gas giant gazprom he told Poland and Bulgaria that he would stop supplies.
The move comes after both countries rejected Moscow’s recent demand to pay for gas supplies in rubles, but also coincides with a sharp rise in tensions between Western allies and Russia as the war in Ukraine continues for a third month.
Early Wednesday morning, Gazprom issued a statement saying it had stopped supplies to both Poland and Bulgaria, both major consumers of Russian gas, because payments were not made in Russian currency. He said supplies would resume once these payments were made.
in the statementGazprom warned both countries against any “unauthorized withdrawal” of gas supplies flowing through their territories.
“Bulgaria and Poland are transit states. In case of unauthorized withdrawal of Russian gas from transit volumes to third countries, supplies for transit will be reduced by this volume.”
prevented, prevented
Poland’s state oil and gas company PGNiG said it had been informed by Gazprom on Tuesday that it would stop supplies being delivered to the country through the Yamal pipeline, starting Wednesday morning.
But after falling to zero on Wednesday, physical gas supplies appeared to rise again, data from the European Union’s network of gas transmission operators showed, according to Reuters. Poland, however, said supplies had effectively stopped.
Bulgaria has not confirmed that its supplies have been stopped, but its Prime Minister, Kiril Petkov, described the move as “blackmail” and said any interruption in supplies would be a breach of contract. Bulgarian Energy Minister Alexander Nikolov said supplies to customers were guaranteed for at least a month, Reuters reported.
Other business leaders and government officials have criticized Russia’s move.
UK Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab said the move would add to Russia’s status as an “economic pariah”, while James von Moltke, chief financial officer of Deutsche Bank, told CNBC on Wednesday it was a “worrying sign”. ” and that although it does not have an immediate economic impact, “it is still a risk for the general panorama”.
Even before the invasion of Ukraine, gas supply had become a point of tension between Russia and its European neighbors with the Kremlin accused of using up energy supplies, with any restrictions dramatically impacting market prices, such as a geopolitical weapon.
Russia vehemently denied this, with Russian President Vladimir Putin calling the accusations “nonsense.” and to say that the United States had contributed to a global energy crisis last fall.
But Russia’s latest game with its European energy customers appears to come after importers in the region, including Poland and Bulgaria, largely rejected its demand for payment in rubles for their gas. They said the lawsuit is a breach of contract, while analysts said the move was a way for Russia to try to boost the ruble as international sanctions imposed due to its unprovoked invasion of Ukraine hit its economy and your coin.
Situation being monitored
Meanwhile, gas supplies from Eastern Europe appear to be in flux and under threat, as Western support for Ukraine and pressure on Russia only mounts.
Polish gas company PGNiG said in a statement on Tuesday that the company is monitoring the situation “and is prepared for various scenarios” and to receive gas from other sources. However, he said the country currently has enough gas in storage and is meeting demand.
Bulgaria imported nearly 73% of its natural gas from Russia in 2020, EU data showed, while Poland imported around 45% of its natural gas from Russia in the same year, just above the EU average. of around 40%, which shows that the bloc is significantly dependent on Russian gas imports.
Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine has led the EU to accelerate the reduction of Russian energy imports and it has led to the abandonment of the already controversial Nord Stream 2 pipeline between Russia and Germany, another country heavily dependent on Russian gas.
Not all countries have rejected Russia’s demand to pay for gas in rubles.
Hungary, whose leader Viktor Orban has friendlier ties to President Vladimir Putin, broke ranks with its EU partners by agreeing to pay for Russian gas in rubles.
Its foreign minister said Wednesday that the country is receiving Russian gas under its contract with Gazprom through Bulgaria and Serbia.
“I want to assure everyone that the non-delivery of gas shipments to Bulgaria does not mean the interruption of shipments in transit through Bulgaria,” Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said. he said on his Facebook page in comments translated by Reuters.
He said Hungary’s next payment obligation for Russian gas is due in mid-May, and the country will transfer its euro payment to Gazprombank, where the amount will be converted into rubles.