5 Oct, 2022 16:22 HomeWorld News
New Russian pipeline a priority – Serb leader
Bosnian Serb president-elect Dodik wants to expedite the Gazprom project and says that West should respect his ties with Moscow.
"Bosnian Serb leader Milorad Dodik told Russia media on Wednesday that issues around the new Gazprom natural gas pipeline could be resolved in as little as two months. He called the infrastructure project one of his most important priorities. “We believe that we can solve this in the foreseeable future, in a couple of months,” said Dodik, noting that the most important thing is to inaugurate the new government and work to remove the administrative obstacles to the pipeline’s construction.
“In any case, I am very grateful to [Russian] President [Vladimir] Putin for the fact that over the past ten months I have met with him three times and each time we talked about very specific issues and projects,” he added.
Dodik claimed victory in Sunday’s presidential elections in Republika Srpska, the Serb half of Bosnia-Herzegovina. Meanwhile, the outgoing RS President Zeljka Cvijanovic was elected to Dodik’s old seat in the tripartite Bosnian presidency.
“Everything else has been resolved, Gazprom has given their full approval and signaled readiness to make the investment, one of the biggest in Republika Srpska,” Dodik added."
New Russian pipeline a priority – Serb leader — RT World News
5 Oct, 2022 06:36 HomeBusiness News
EU faces unprecedented gas shortage – international watchdog
Fuel rationing will be inevitable if weather brings a colder than average winter, report warns.
"In the face of “unprecedented risks” to gas supplies this winter, the EU will have to reduce its demand by up to 13%, the International Energy Agency (IEA) has announced.
With fears mounting of a complete cutoff of gas deliveries from Russia, following a drop in supplies and the recent incident involving the Nord Stream pipelines, the Paris-based body predicts long-term market uncertainty.
According to its quarterly market report published on Monday, gas consumption in the bloc declined by more than 10% in the first eight months of the year, compared with the same period in 2021, “driven by a 15% drop in the industrial sector as factories curtailed production.”
https://www.rt.com/business/563965-eu-unprecedented-gas-shortage/
5 Oct, 2022 11:19
HomeBusiness News
Berlin denounces Washington’s ‘astronomical’ profiteering
“Friendly” gas suppliers, particularly the US, have been charging enormous prices for their exports, German economy minister claims.
"The US and other “friendly” gas-supplier states have been profiting from the worsening energy crisis in the EU, Germany’s Economy Minister Robert Habeck said on Wednesday.
“Some countries, including friendly ones, sometimes achieve astronomical prices [for their gas]. Of course, that brings with it problems that we have to talk about,” Habeck said, in an interview with the regional paper NOZ translated by NBC News. He called for more solidarity from Washington when it comes to assisting its energy-pressed allies in Europe.
“The United States contacted us when oil prices shot up, and the national oil reserves in Europe were tapped as a result. I think such solidarity would also be good for curbing gas prices,” Habeck suggested.
According to the minister, the EU “should pool its market power and orchestrate smart and synchronized purchasing behavior ... so that individual EU countries do not outbid each other and drive up world market prices.”
The bloc is facing a tough winter, with gas shortages predicted due to drastically reduced Russian supplies"
https://www.rt.com/business/564092-b...-profiteering/
5 Oct, 2022 11:10 HomeBusiness News
Russia resumes gas flow to EU state – Gazprom
The energy major resolved a row that blocked gas transit to Italy through Austria.
"Supplies of Russian gas to Italy through Austria resumed on Wednesday, Russia’s energy giant Gazprom said in a statement posted on its Telegram channel. The enforced suspension occurred during the weekend over the application of new regulations.
The company added that it managed to find a solution with Italian buyers to restart gas sales amid legal changes in Austria, which forced Gazprom to stop deliveries on Saturday.
“The Austrian operator said about its readiness to confirm the transport nominations of LLC Gazprom Export, which allows resuming Russian gas supplies through Austria,” it said.
Italian energy giant Eni SpA confirmed the resumption of gas flows on Wednesday, saying the issue had been resolved, in a company statement. Austrian regulator E-Control also said a solution appeared to have been found.
On Saturday, Gazprom informed Eni that it would not be able to supply gas to the country due to the “impossibility of transporting it” through Austria. The Russian company explained that the gas flow had been suspended as a result of the refusal of the Austrian operator to confirm “transit nominations” due to regulatory changes that were introduced in Austria at the end of September.
The spat with Austrian authorities is the latest in a series of disputes over regulation and contractual clauses that have forced Gazprom to curb gas supplies to buyers across the EU, further exacerbating the energy crisis in the region.
Following the imposition of Western sanctions Moscow obliged buyers from countries that supported the penalties to pay for Russian natural gas in rubles, halting deliveries to nations that refused."
https://www.rt.com/business/564091-gazprom-resume-gas-deliveries-italy/
5 Oct, 2022 16:55
HomeBusiness News
EU nation temporarily waives anti-Russia sanctions
Bulgaria will exempt fuel supplies from the embargo, in view of the country’s economic plight .
"Energy-starved Bulgaria will temporarily cease to enforce EU sanctions on Russian fuel, to ensure the work of government institutions, the state press service reported on Wednesday following a Cabinet meeting.
According to the report, Russian companies supplying automotive fuel will be exempt from the embargo until the end of 2024, due to shortages in the country.
“It is permitted to conclude new state contracts and framework agreements with automotive fuel suppliers from the Russian Federation after October 10, 2022... An exception is introduced due to the need to ensure the normal operation of state bodies and other structures requiring motor fuel, in order to protect public order, the life and health of the citizens of Bulgaria, and national security,” the press service announced. The ban will come back into force on December 31, 2024.
The dominant fuel provider in the Balkan country is the Neftochim Burgas refinery, which is owned by Russia's Lukoil. Until the sanctions, half of its oil supply came from Russia.
In early September, the head of the Bulgarian Finance Ministry, Rositsa Velkova, announced her intention to obtain permission from Brussels to continue buying fuel from Russia until at least the end of 2024. If Sophia does not receive a reprieve from the sanctions, the country’s drivers risk being left without fuel, the minister stressed."
https://www.rt.com/business/564125-e...sia-sanctions/
5 Oct, 2022 06:09 HomeBusiness News
Germany may cut energy exports to neighbors — FT
Berlin may take the step to avoid power outages at home, the outlet reports, citing network operator.
"Germany may have to temporarily limit its export of electricity during the upcoming winter, including to France. That's according to Hendrik Neumann, chief technical officer of the country’s leading grid operator Amprion, cited by the Financial Times.
According to the newspaper, the measure could be implemented as a “last resort” in order to avoid power outages within Germany. Neumann reportedly said that exports would likely be halted for several hours at a time, “not days.”
“We are assuming a highly stressed situation during the coming winter,” Neumann told FT, adding that the current energy crisis in Germany and in the broader EU is only partially caused by the situation around Ukraine and the ensuing sanctions war with Russia. Other “overlapping issues” include the shutdowns of roughly half of the nuclear power plants in France, as well as coal shortages caused by delivery problems due to low water levels. Issues stemming from the remoteness of most wind power generation plants from their main consumers, industrial plants, also are said to be adding fuel to the fire."
Germany has been a large power exporter for years. Last year, for instance, it sold 17,400 gigawatt hours (GWh) more electricity to other EU countries than it imported, according to data from the network regulator.
France and Austria are Germany’s major power buyers. France imported 6,000 GWh of electricity from Germany in January to March this year, 5% of Germany’s overall electricity production during that period, according to data from think tank Fraunhofer ISE. This figure was five times greater than in the same period last year, the report states.
Analysts say that a drop in German power exports may exacerbate supply shortages in France. Last month, reports emerged that France may even halt power supplies to Italy for two years, due to problems with nuclear power plants. However, France later denied these claims."
https://www.rt.com/business/564057-g...xports-france/