Poland ends deal to receive Russian gas after ruble dispute
WARSAW (Reuters) – Poland said on Monday it has terminated its agreement with Russia to receive Russian gas via the Yamal pipeline, after Warsaw rejected a demand to pay for the fuel in rubles and Moscow responded by cutting off supplies in April.
Warsaw’s move does not affect gas flows from Germany to Poland via the pipeline, which is operated by a Polish company, Polish Climate Minister Anna Moskwa, who announced the decision on Twitter, told Poland’s PAP news agency.
Poland previously said it did not plan to extend the supply contract that had been due to expire at the end of 2022. In 2019, Polish gas firm PGNiG told Russian gas exporter Gazprom it would not renew the deal.
“Russia’s aggression against Ukraine has confirmed the accuracy of the Polish government’s determination to become completely independent from Russian gas,” Moskwa said. “We always knew that Gazprom was not a reliable partner.”
Gazprom did not reply to a Reuters request for comment.
Warsaw has refused to comply with Russia’s demand for European countries to pay for gas in rubles, even though most contracts are denominated in euros or dollars.
Moskwa said ending the deal was natural because Russia had breached the contract by halting supplies.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: “We can hardly talk about any contractual relations now. Poland has refused to pay for gas long ago, and in order for gas to be supplied, written agreements and payment are needed.”
“We need to carefully analyze the possible consequences for the transit,” he told reporters on a conference call when speaking about Poland’s move. He did not elaborate.
Poland has used the pipeline to receive gas from Germany by reversing the flows when gas has not flowed from Russia toward Western Europe.
The Polish section of the Yamal pipeline that links Russia with Western Europe is owned by a joint venture of Gazprom and PGNiG, but it is operated by Poland’s stateowned gas transmission company Gaz-System.
“Intergovernmental agreements with Russia, which are breaching European law, should not be in place any longer,” Moskwa told PAP. “The Yamal pipeline is functioning in line with the European law, which allows it to be used for reverse supplies of gas from Germany to Poland without interruption.”
The Polish government adopted a resolution to terminate the Russian contract on May 13, said Piotr Naimski, Poland’s minister in charge of energy security. An official notification would be sent soon, he told public radio on Monday.