Gazprom blames Naftogaz for blocking gas deliveries

Uchenna Izundu
International Editor

LONDON, Jan. 15 -- OAO Gazprom is blaming Naftogaz for blocking yet another delivery of gas supplies to its European customers via the Sudja gas metering station.

Gazprom attempted to send 99.2 million cu m/day (MMcmd) of gas on Jan. 15, of which 13.9 MMcmd was for customers in Moldova, 63.1 MMcmd for the Balkans via the Orlovka gas metering station, and 22.2 MMcmd for Slovakian customers via the Uzhgorod gas metering station.

Gazprom said that Ukraine had refused to transport the gas because there was no technical agreement in place, despite having a valid transit contract from 2003-13 and promising the European Union to restore gas supplies (OGJ Online, Jan. 12, 2009). It urged Naftogaz to honor its "contractual commitments without delay and accept Russian gas into Ukraine's gas transmission system for transit to European customers."

Gazprom declared force majeure Jan. 13 on its European gas supplies via Ukraine. It is quarrelling with Ukraine over who should pay for and supply the technical gas to maintain pressure in the pipe to transit the gas to Europe.

Dmitry Peskov, spokesman for Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, told journalists in a conference call Russia would encourage European gas companies to form a consortium to supply 1.7 billion cu m of technical gas to Ukraine to ensure delivery to Europe.

"Russia is not ready to take all the risks supplying this amount," Peskov said. He said it was too early to comment on how much the consortium would sell gas to Ukraine.

This is the second week since Russia cut off domestic gas supplies to Ukraine after demanding that Ukraine pay $450/1,000 cu m—more than double what it paid last year.

Russia has called a summit to discuss the crisis on Jan. 17 and invited European leaders to participate.

Contact Uchenna Izundu at [email protected].