Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said that about half of Gazprom’s foreign clients have complied with Russian President Vladimir Putin’s request to open accounts with Gazprom Bank, according to Bloomberg News.
The shift in measures follows a request by Putin in March that foreign buyers must open accounts in rubles and foreign currency at the bank to make payments for natural gas.
But European companies fear that doing so could violate sanctions imposed on Russia after its war on Ukraine.
“I think we have about 54 companies that have contracts with Gazpromexport… According to the data I have, about half of them have already opened special accounts in our authorized bank, accounts in foreign currency and rubles,” Novak said today, Thursday, at an event in Moscow.
Novak, who is also Russia’s chief energy official, did not name the companies or countries that had acquiesced in the new payment mechanism, saying only that some of Gazprom’s most important clients have either paid for the shipments or are already willing to pay on time, avoiding supply disruptions.
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