The Russian gas company Gazprom will suspend deliveries to gas supplier GasTerra, partly owned by the Dutch state, from Tuesday because it refused to pay in rubles, the Dutch firm announced on Monday.
Read alsoSuspension of Russian gas deliveries to Finland from Saturday
“
Gazprom has announced that it will interrupt the supply as of May 31, 2022
,” GasTerra said in a statement, while stressing that it had “
anticipated this by buying elsewhere
”.
After the start of the Russian military operation in Ukraine on February 24 and the imposition of Western sanctions, Russian President Vladimir Putin on March 31 demanded that buyers of Russian gas from "
unfriendly
" countries pay in rubles from accounts in Russia on pain of being deprived of supplies.
“
GasTerra has repeatedly urged Gazprom to adhere to the contractually agreed payment structure and delivery obligations, unfortunately to no avail
,” the company explained.
"
GasTerra does not comply with these payment requirements
”, she added, stressing that these present “
a risk of violation of the sanctions drawn up by the EU
”, but also “
financial and operational risks
”.
The Russian energy giant's decision means that 2 billion cubic meters of gas will not be supplied to the Netherlands by October, GasTerra said, adding that it "
anticipated this by buying gas elsewhere
".
GasTerra is jointly owned by energy giants Shell and Esso, Dutch gas company EBN and the Dutch state, which has a 10% stake.
The Dutch government said it "
understands
" GasTerra's decision not to comply with
Gazprom's "
unilateral " request.
"
This decision has no consequences for the physical gas supply of Dutch households
," Climate and Energy Minister Rob Jetten said on Twitter.