The first cuts begin in Europe after the ruble rest on Putin’s natural gas payments. Polish public energy company PGNIG SA has announced that Gazprom will stop gas supply to the Yamal pipeline as of April 27. In the statement made by the company, it was reported that Gazprom notified PGNiG on the morning of 27 April of its intention to completely suspend deliveries under the Yamal contract.
In the statement of PGNIG SA, it was stated that steps will be taken to restore the gas flow to the country, and it was emphasized that any interruption in the gas supply is also a violation of this contract and they have the right to demand compensation for this.
“GAS TANKS FILLING RATE 80 PERCENT”
Emphasizing that the occupancy rate of gas storage facilities in Poland is 80 percent, it was stated that there would be no problem in meeting the gas demand in the country.
In the statement made by the Bulgarian Ministry of Energy, it was stated that Bulgaria’s public natural gas company Bulgargaz was informed by the Russian energy company Gazprom Export that Gazprom will stop gas supply as of April 27.
In the statement made by the Ministry of Climate of Poland regarding the cessation of gas flow from Russia, it was stated that Poland’s energy supply is safe and the gas going to consumers will not be cut off.
“A CLIMB IN DISPUTES”
The interruption of Russian gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria was considered an escalation in the disputes between Moscow and Europe over energy supply and the war in Ukraine.
In his statement on the subject on his Twitter account, Fatih Birol, Director of the International Energy Agency (IEA), stated that Gazprom’s attempt to completely stop gas supplies to Poland is another sign of Russia’s “politicization” of existing agreements.
Emphasizing that the cessation of gas supply from Russia will accelerate Europe’s efforts to remain independent from Russian energy sources, Birol stated that the IEA stands by Poland.
PUTIN ANNOUNCED THE RUBLE DECISION IN MARCH
Poland, whose natural gas supply contract with Russia will expire at the end of this year, has announced that it will not agree to pay Russian energy company Gazprom in rubles for gas supply and will not extend the contract.
In the statement made by the Russian energy company Gazprom, it was stated that “Poland has to pay for natural gas shipments today with the new payment system”.
On March 23, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced his plan to switch to Russian rubles for payments for natural gas sales.
Putin had threatened to cut off the gas supply if the demands were not fully met.
According to the new system, which entered into force with the decree signed by Putin on March 31, the funds in question will be converted into rubles on the Moscow Stock Exchange after the countries that buy Russian gas open an account with Gazprombank and make the payments to this bank.
- Gas cut comes after Poland’s sanctions against Russia
SANCTIONS ON RUSSIAN BILLIONARDS AND COMPANIES
On the other hand, Polish Interior Minister Mariusz Kaminski announced yesterday that Poland will impose sanctions on 50 Russian billionaires and their companies, including an asset freeze and an entry ban to Poland.
It was noteworthy that among the Russian billionaires sanctioned by Poland are Mikhail Fridman, co-founder of Alfa Bank, and Eugene Kaspersky, the founder of the Russian cybersecurity company Kaspersky.
Poland, in response to Moscow’s war in Ukraine, called on European Union countries to immediately stop buying oil, gas and coal from Russia, while the Polish government announced that it would stop importing coal from Russia until May and using Russian oil by the end of 2022. .
Poland imports 64 percent of its oil, 46 percent of gas (about 10.2 billion cubic meters per year) and 15 percent of coal from Russia. While Slovakia is the country most dependent on Russia for its energy needs among the European Union countries, approximately two-thirds of the energy needs of Poland, Lithuania and Finland are supplied from Russia.
With the Baltic gas pipeline, which aims to bring Norwegian gas to Poland, it is aimed to end the country’s natural gas dependence on Russia by the end of this year. (AA)