The Russian gas company Gazprom has interrupted the supply of natural gas through Ukraine early this Wednesday as its five-year transit agreements signed in 2020 expired, according to records consulted by Europa Press.
“Due to the repeated and explicit refusal of the Ukrainian side to extend these agreements, Gazprom was deprived of the technical and legal opportunity to supply gas for transit through the territory of Ukraine from January 1, 2025,” he said. the company assured in a statement.
The closure of the gas transit route to Europe ends a decade of critical relations caused by the seizure of Crimea by Russia in 2014.
After the outbreak of war in Ukraine in 2022, the European Union redoubled its efforts to reduce its dependence on the Russian energy apparatus by seeking alternative sources and contracts with other countries such as Qatar and the United States that have helped the community bloc keep prices stable at despite the disconnection with Russia.
However, Gazprom has also suffered the cutting of gas purchases by European countries. In the last year, the Russian state company has recorded losses of more than 7 billion dollars (6,727 million euros)the first time it has posted red numbers since 1999 and this despite the company’s efforts to try to compensate for this drop in exports to the West thanks to China.
«The European gas infrastructure is flexible enough to supply gas of non-Russian origin to Central and Eastern Europe via alternative routes. “It has been reinforced with important new import capacities for liquefied natural gas from 2022,” said European Commission spokesperson Anna-Kaisa Itkonen.
Impact on the market
Despite the stoppage of flows, no substantial impacts are expected on the European energy market due to the disconnection with Russia. The gas market maintains stable prices around 48.50 euros per megawatt hour.
However, despite the EU’s progress in replacing Russian supplies through Ukraine, Europe has felt the impact in the form of higher energy costs that have affected the competitiveness of the community industry, especially the German industry compared to the United States and China.
Furthermore, Ukraine will also feel the effects of this energy disconnection as it faces the loss of some $800 million a year in transit fees from Russia, while Gazprom will lose close to $800 million a year in transit fees from Russia. 5 billion dollars in gas sales.
Moldova, one of the countries most affected by this contract, states that it will have to take measures to reduce its gas consumption by a third.
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