EU discussing fresh anti-gas crisis tactics

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS – European gas companies may end up buying excess volumes of Russian gas to help prevent a new EU supply crisis, in plans to be discussed at the EU summit on Thursday (18 June).

Russian supplier Gazprom is facing financial and technical difficulties after having contracted to buy set volumes of gas from Central Asian producers while facing a sharp drop in demand in the EU and Ukraine.

At the same time, Ukraine gas distributor, Naftogaz, is running out of money to pay the Russian firm. But Ukraine has hoarded gas in its vast underground tanks to help see it through the winter in case Gazprom cuts off supplies.

The last Russian cut-off, in January, caused massive disruption in the EU, which receives 25 percent of its gas from Russia via Ukraine.

EUobserver