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Gazprom headquarters in Moscow: Dispute over payment terms
Photo: MAXIM SHIPENKOV / EPA-EFE
Last month, the Russian President announced new rules for paying for gas deliveries, but there are disputes with the Europeans about their implementation.
Now the European Commission has specified its regulations regarding the ruble payment demanded by Russia - and has drawn a red line in the process.
Gas suppliers opening a bank account in Russia and continuing to pay for supplies in euros, as requested by Moscow, did not violate EU sanctions against Russia, EU Commission officials said.
"What the Russians do with the money afterwards is up to them," said one official.
However, the EU Commission does not consider it acceptable that the purchase by Russia is only considered complete once the money has been converted into rubles.
"It would be a violation of sanctions for a company to accept opening a second account to meet demands," said an EU official.
During the currency exchange in rubles on the second account, the money is in the hands of the Russian central bank, which is sanctioned by the EU.
At the end of March, Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin demanded that Western countries open accounts with Gazprombank in Russia effective April 1 in order to pay for Russian gas.
Otherwise, deliveries to the "unfriendly" countries would be stopped.
According to a decree signed by Putin, payments can still be deposited into the Russian account in euros or dollars.
Gazprombank converts the money into rubles and transfers the amount in Russian currency to Gazprom.
If the payments were not made, deliveries would be stopped, Putin had threatened.
Russia halted gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria on Wednesday after the two countries failed to agree to the new payment system.
According to information from the EU Commission, both countries wanted to process their due invoices as before the war.
According to the official, most of the purchases so far have been made through accounts at Gazprombank in Luxembourg.
Accordingly, around 97 percent of gas contracts in the EU are denominated in dollars or euros.
mic/dpa-afx