Ukraine accuses Russia of cutting gas shipments to Europe

Feb 3, 2012, 11:00 GMT

Kiev - European downstream nations are receiving less Russian natural gas from Ukrainian pipelines because Moscow has reduced volumes of fuel pumped into them, a top energy official in Kiev said Friday.

'The main problem is that there is severe cold in Russia and the volume of gas reaching our country from Russia has fallen dramatically,' said Yury Boiko, Ukraine's minister of energy.

'We have an agreement that 490 million cubic metres of gas should reach us (from Russia) every day, and right now it's at 415 million cubic metres,' Boiko said, according to Interfax news agency.

Boiko's remarks came after claims Thursday by senior officials at the Russian natural gas company Gazprom that European gas importers Poland, Austria and Italy were receiving between 10 and 30 per cent less Russian gas than needed because of increased gas consumption in Ukraine.

Ukrainian officials have said severe cold has forced an increase in natural gas usage, but they insist that the fuel is being drawn from domestic reserves rather than Russian gas earmarked for Europe.

Russia supplies roughly one-quarter of Europe's natural gas needs, more than two-thirds of it delivered to market via pipelines crossing Ukraine.

Russian gas deliveries to Europe have been halted twice, in mid-winter in 2006 and 2009. The halt in both cases stemmed from gas pricing disputes between Ukraine and Russia, with nations in eastern and southern Europe being hit by shortages.

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