Russia controls the gas from Poland and Bulgaria, Austria is not affected
Russia is apparently turning off the gas supply to Poland and Bulgaria. A delivery stop to Poland was first reported on Tuesday. In the evening, Bulgaria also reported a delivery stop. Gas deliveries to Austria were initially up and running on Tuesday evening.
The Bulgarian gas company Bulgargas was informed on Tuesday that the Russian state-owned company Gazprom would suspend natural gas deliveries from Wednesday (April 27), the Economy Ministry in Sofia said. Previously, Poland had already announced the stop of Russian gas supplies via the Yamal pipeline, confirmed by Gazprom.
“The Bulgarian side has fully fulfilled its obligations and has met all the obligations under its current contract on time,” the ministry stressed. Bulgaria is heavily dependent on Russian gas.
Poland: Delivery stop from Wednesday
As of Wednesday, deliveries via the Yamal pipeline to Poland will no longer take place, the Polish natural gas company PGNiG announced in Warsaw on Tuesday. The Russian natural gas company Gazprom had informed them that gas supplies would be shut off.
Poland will not pay for natural gas in rubles, as Russia is demanding. PGNiG sees the decision as a breach of existing contracts. You want to claim damages for breach of contract. PGNiG will also take steps to secure the gas supply according to the contractual agreements. PGNiG has long-term contracts with Gazprom that expire this year.
The supply of Poland with Russian gas via the Yamal pipeline was temporarily stopped on Tuesday. According to data from the EU network of gas network operators, no gas flowed from Belarus to Poland in the afternoon. In the evening, gas flowed through the line again.