After Poland, Bulgaria and Finland, Russia has now also stopped natural gas deliveries to the Netherlands. The reason is the Dutch refusal to pay for Russian supplies in roubles. The Kremlin is thus escalating the dispute over payment with another step. Denmark could be the next country to be affected by the suspension of gas deliveries.
Russia stops natural gas deliveries to the Netherlands
The Dutch importer Gas Terra, announces on its homepage that the Netherlands will no longer be supplied by the Russian gas company Gazprom as of 31 May, as the company refuses to pay for the deliveries in roubles. Gazprom is thus cancelling the agreed supply volume of 2 billion cubic metres of natural gas in the period from 31 May up to and including 30 September this year.
Bild: Hauptquartier der Gasunie in Groningen User Www.sportstatistieken.nl on nl.wiki
Denmark also warns of possible delivery stop
In Denmark, the utility Orsted also warns of a possible imminent supply shortfall by Gazprom. According to Orsted, the payment deadline in Denmark also expires on 31 May. Denmark is also not prepared to pay for the ordered natural gas in roubles.
Delivery volumes manageable – energy market reacts calmly
However, the quantities delivered to Holland are manageable, as the 2 billion cubic metres correspond to just about 14 percent of demand. The Dutch government has already decided to stop buying gas from Russia in the new year. Holland therefore wants to terminate the contracts with Gazprom in the autumn. For Tom Marzec-Manser, chief gas strategist of the London-based analysis company ICIS, the supply stop therefore comes as no surprise.
The Danish supplier Orsted also imports less than two billion cubic metres of gas a year from Russia. That is why the energy exchanges reacted rather calmly.
Supply stop could lead to problems filling the gas storage facilities
In the medium term, however, the reduction in Russian gas supplies could mean that the gas storage facilities in Europe cannot be filled as planned. According to Hanns Koenig, gas expert at the consultancy Aurora Energy Research, it will not be easy to fill the European gas storage facilities in time for winter.
The Netherlands is not nearly as dependent on Russian gas as Germany. Holland has its own gas fields and was one of the leading European gas producers for decades. Production has been drastically reduced in recent years because of repeated earthquakes in the production area near Groningen.
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