Russia cut natural gas supplies to European Union member
Slovakia by 50% Wednesday, Moscow's latest and most significant
reduction in energy supplies to an EU country that is helping
Ukraine build gas supplies ahead of winter.
Slovakia's prime minister said the supply cut is a politically
driven message to the EU as it negotiates fragile gas talks between
Moscow and Kiev.
"What's interesting in the case is that it isn't about a lack of
gas, but this is about playing with gas supplies as an instrument
of political posturing," Robert Fico said Wednesday.
Slovakia this year began supplying natural gas to its eastern
neighbor as an act of solidarity after Russia's OAO Gazprom stopped
supplying Ukraine with gas in June amid a price dispute and the
broader conflicts between the two countries.
Mr. Fico said Slovakia will "fulfill its commitments" to supply
Ukraine with the fuel.
Eustream, the Slovak gas pipeline operator, Wednesday said its
supplies to Ukraine were taking place without interruption.
Gazprom earlier reduced gas flows to Slovakia and Austria, as
well as to Poland, which also is supplying Ukraine with gas.
Hungary, which had been supplying gas to Ukraine, last week
halted all gas shipments there, leaving Slovakia and Poland as
Ukraine's lone suppliers.
Hungary Wednesday said it is receiving all contracted supplies
of gas from Russia.
The fall in supplies to the EU states comes as Russia and
Ukraine have been unable to agree on terms to resume gas flows to
the former Soviet country.
Last Friday the two sides agreed to a tentative deal brokered by
European Commissioner for Energy Günther Oettinger, but Moscow and
Kiev haven't agreed on details and the compact remains on ice as
the winter heating season approaches.
As of Sept. 30, Ukraine's underground gas storage facilities
were only at 52% of capacity, according to Gas Infrastructure
Europe, a Brussels-based trade group. Ukraine faces a gas shortage
if supplies cannot be resumed, analysts have said.
To cope domestically with the fall in gas supplies, Slovakia's
natural gas import and distribution company SPP AS said that it has
made an "extraordinary purchase" of gas on the spot market from
alternative suppliers. The volume it acquired is sufficient to
cover the current daily consumption of its customer base, while
also enabling the country to continue filling its underground
storage facilities, the company said.
Slovakia's storage facilities were at 95% of capacity on
Tuesday.
SPP said it would continue injecting gas into the underground
storage units until the end of October and Slovak households and
businesses will continue to receive all gas needed.
Should gas supplies to Slovakia remain reduced or even stop, SPP
said it has adopted measures enabling it to source gas from
Austria, the Czech Republic and Germany.
Mr. Fico said he doesn't believe Russia will completely halt gas
supplies to the EU country.
Write to Sean Carney at sean.carney@wsj.com
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