Russia's Garzprom suspends gas transit through Poland to Europe after Putin's order

Russian energy corporation, Gazprom has decided to suspend transporting natural gas through Poland via the sections of its Yamal-Europa pipeline on Thursday. This announcement comes just a day after the Russian Federation announced sanctions against more than 30 energy corporations, including EuRoPol GAZ of Poland, which owns the Polish portion of the Yamal-Europe gas pipeline, in retaliation for Western sanctions imposed in response to Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.

The spokesperson of Gazprom, Sergei Kupriyanov stated in a Telegram message that sanctions were imposed on a number of foreign corporations in compliance with Presidential Decree No 252 of May 3, 2022, and Government Resolution No 851 on May 11, 2022.  

EuRoPol GAZ, the Polish company that controls the Yamal-Europe gas pipeline, is one of them. He further stated that the use of the EuRoPol pipeline to carry Russian gas through Poland has been banned.

Previously, Poland sanctioned EuRoPol GAZ

Previously, Poland sanctioned Gazprom, and on April 26, 2022, due to Russian aggression in Ukraine, preventing it from exercising its rights to EuRoPol GAZ shares and other securities. Kupriyanov stated that by sanctioning Gazprom as a EuRoPol GAZ stakeholder in late April Poland had "repeatedly" violated Gazprom's rights as a EuRoPol shareholder.

Kupriyanov also said that the sanctions, which were imposed in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, prevented Gazprom from exercising its rights related to shares and obtaining dividends.

The Yamal-Europe pipeline can transport up to 33 billion cubic meters of gas from the Yamal Peninsula and western Siberia to Germany via Belarus and Poland. On the other hand, the Nord Stream pipeline, which runs beneath the Baltic Sea, allows Russia to ship gas straight to Germany. For the second day in a row, operators reported a reduction in gas deliveries from Russia to Europe.

Europe buys a large portion of its natural gas from the Russian Federation

Europe buys a large portion of its natural gas from the Russian Federation, and its reliance has come under fire in the aftermath of Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. Dmytro Kuleba, Ukraine's foreign minister called on Europe to stop relying on Russian gas. Various European countries have started looking for alternatives to limit their reliance on Russian gas imports after Gazprom suspended gas supplies to Poland and Belarus late last month.

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