Latest news with #gasdeal
Reuters
10 hours ago
- Business
- Reuters
Serbia seeks new gas deal with Russia at 'best price in Europe'
ST PETERSBURG, June 18 (Reuters) - Serbia is working on a new gas deal with Russia and will get the best price in Europe, the head of its state gas company told Reuters in an interview on Wednesday. Dusan Bajatovic, the head of Srbijagas, also said Europe - just like Serbia - would have no other option but to go back to Russian gas to cover its energy needs at reasonable cost. Serbia is one of the last remaining Russian gas buyers in Europe, receiving around 3 billion cubic metres last year. It is seeking membership of the European Union, which this week proposed a legally binding ban on imports of Russian gas and liquefied natural gas (LNG) by the end of 2027. Bajatovic said the new contract with Gazprom would run from September, with a duration of either three or 10 years. "The issue of price is more or less resolved. It will be very good, it will be the best price in Europe," Bajatovic said. He declined to give details, as commercial talks were still going on. Bajatovic said the future of the gas market would be shaped by Russia and the United States, as producers, and China as a major consumer, and Europe would have to live with it. "It is mathematics. You cannot solve the equation of gas supplies to Europe at acceptable prices without the Russian gas," he said on the sidelines of Russia's main economic conference in St Petersburg, which has been shunned by most Western CEOs because of the war in Ukraine. Bajatovic said he fully supported the idea of U.S. investors buying the Nord Stream gas pipeline under the Baltic Sea, which was severely damaged by explosions in 2022 and has not delivered gas since then.
Russia Today
10 hours ago
- Business
- Russia Today
Ditching Russian gas could cost EU state €16 billion
Slovakia could face €16 billion (over $18 billion) in penalties for cutting short a long-term gas deal with Russia's Gazprom under the EU's proposed phaseout plan, the country's state-owned gas importer SPP has warned, according to Reuters. Under the so-called REPowerEU plan, Brussels aims to eliminate the EU's reliance on Russian fossil fuels by 2028. The controversial legislation, supported by Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, would ban new gas contracts with Russia from 2026 and long-term ones by the end of 2027. The Commission has said it is considering legal avenues to enable European companies to claim force majeure, allowing them to terminate Russian gas contracts without penalties. SPP, which has a supply agreement with Gazprom until 2034, said on Tuesday that even if it invokes force majeure, the Russian energy giant may still seek compensation if an EU-wide import ban comes into force. Slovakia has repeatedly stressed the risks of cutting off Russian supplies, warning it would drive up prices across Europe and undermine energy security. Along with Hungary, Austria and reportedly Italy, Bratislava has opposed sanctions on Russian gas, which currently require unanimous backing from all EU member states. Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico slammed the new phaseout plan as 'economic suicide.' Unlike sanctions, however, this plan is expected to be introduced as trade legislation, requiring the support of just 15 out of 27 EU members to pass, Reuters noted. Slovakia's energy setup leaves it particularly vulnerable. The landlocked country depends on Russia for about 85% of the gas it uses. In February, Slovakia began receiving Russian supplies via the TurkStream pipeline after Kiev halted gas transit through Ukraine, avoiding a domestic energy crisis. The country had already experienced a significant reduction in Russian gas imports due to Ukraine-related sanctions on Moscow and the 2022 sabotage of the Nord Stream pipeline. The EC's proposal will now go through the EU's co-decision legislative process, requiring approval from both the European Parliament and the Council.
