On April 26, Poland’s Ministry of Climate and Environment held an extraordinary meeting after the European Network of Transmission System Operators for Gas (ENTSOG) had reported no pressure from the gas transit pipeline near Kondratki at the Polish-Belarusian border. Just hours later, Russian energy corporation Gazprom notified Polish and Bulgarian officials that it decided to suspend gas supplies starting Wednesday.
The monopolist confirmed that the decision was taken after Warsaw and Sofia had refused to submit to the Kremlin’s gas-for-ruble demand issued by Russian President Vladimir Putin in March. April 22 was the deadline for Poland to regulate gas payments in the Russian currency, but the Polish Oil Mining and Gas Extraction S.A. said multiple times that it would not pay in rubles.
The European Commission also warned against adhering to Russia’s demand as doing so would help the Kremlin circumvent sanctions levied against the country.
Warsaw expressed no concern about Russia’s maneuverers since Poland has large volumes of gas reserves and is expecting to complete the Baltic pipeline to receive gas from the Nordic states by the end of 2022. It also has Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Energy terminals in its northern city of Świnoujście.
“Poland has the necessary gas reserves and sources of supply to protect our security – we have been effectively independent of Russia for years. Our warehouses are 76 per cent full. There will be no shortage of gas in Polish homes,” wrote Minister of Climate and the Environment Anna Moskwa on her official Twitter handle.
Earlier, the Bulgarian government said that the “Russian proposal for a two-step payment procedure is in violation of current contract arrangements and bears considerable risks for Bulgaria, including making payments without receiving any gas deliveries from Russia.”
The country is now trying to find alternative sources to replace the supplies it gets from Russia.
