Russia’s state-owned gasoline agency Gazprom will definitely end its gasoline shipments to Austria this weekend break, the nation’s greatest energy distributor, OMV said on Friday.
OMV revealed that Gazprom will definitely stop offering it with gasoline on Saturday.
The Austrian energy agency said it had really anticipated this development which the nation will definitely stay to acquire gasoline with import from Germany, Italy and the Netherlands.
Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer said the nation has a protected and safe provide of various gasoline which “no one will freeze.”
“The supply is secure,” Nehammer said in a take a look at the chancellery to take care of the circumstance.
“Our gas storage facilities are full and we have sufficient capacity to obtain gas from other regions,” he included.
Most of Austria’s gasoline provide is Russian
Austria’s energy reference to Russia return to the Cold War, because it was among the many very first Western European nations to import gasoline from the Soviet Union in 1968.
The finish of Russian gasoline distribution to Austria adheres to a settlement judgment by the International Chamber of Commerce, that granted OMV some EUR230 million ($242 million) in a authorized battle with Gazprom.
OMV after that said it could definitely stop paying Gazprom till it received a amount of gasoline matching to the EUR230 million that the Russian agency owed them.
Austria obtains quite a lot of its gasoline from Russia, as excessive as 98% in December 2023, based on Energy Minister Lenore Gewessler.
No modification to Ukraine plan
Since the battle in Ukraine began in 2022, simply 3 European nations–Austria, Slovakia and Hungary– remained to import Russian gasoline by way of a pipe that takes a visit with Ukraine, despite the Russian intrusion.
But Ukraine revealed it’s going to definitely not proceed gasoline transportation on the pipe after January 1, 2025, which will surely require these nations to find numerous different distributors.
Nehammer said in a declaration on Friday that despite the cease in gasoline shipments, his nation will surely not alter its Ukraine plan.
“We will not be blackmailed and will not be brought to our knees,” he said.
Nehammer charged Gazprom of not satisfying its cargo commitments on quite a few occasions, with the target of making use of stress on Austria for its help of EU permissions versusRussia
jcg/ab (dpa, Reuters, AP)
