Belarus said on Wednesday that Russian gas giant OAO Gazprom (GAZP.RS) had admitted to owing it $32 million for transit of Russian gas to Europe, saying a new deal removing all sticking points would be signed this week.
Belarus said on Wednesday that Russian gas giant OAO Gazprom (GAZP.RS)
had admitted to owing it $32 million for transit of Russian gas to Europe,
saying a new deal removing all sticking points would be signed this week.
A convoluted energy spat briefly disrupted European supplies flowing through
Belarus
last
week as the two ex-Soviet countries haggled over gas prices. Gazprom cut
Belarussian gas supplies by 60% and
Belarus
halted transit of Europe-bound Russian gas in retaliation.
Belarus's first deputy prime minister Vladimir Semashko told the country's
parliament that the national gas pipeline operator Beltransgaz and Gazprom were
set to sign an addendum to the two companies' existing contract Thursday.
"The document has already been agreed upon with Gazprom. They acknowledge
their debt," Semashko said.
"We will certainly sign the addendum to the contract tomorrow. The Russian
side has recognized a transit fee of $1.88 per 1,000 cubic metres."
Along with gas prices, transit fees for Russian gas flowing to
Europe
were
among the major sticking points in bilateral cooperation.
Gazprom has said the current contract stipulates a lower transit fee and had
earlier refused to pay more.
A Gazprom spokesman said Wednesday he wouldn't comment "ahead of the
signing." He also declined to say when the signing would take place.
Gazprom chief executive Alexei Miller said last Friday that the supplement to
the current contract had been agreed upon and would be signed soon, without
being more specific.
Last week, Gazprom paid
Belarus
$228
million in gas transit fees, but
Belarus
insists the Russian gas firm owes it another $32 million.
The country's leader Alexander Lukashenko said
Belarus
would
halt the transit of all
Russia
's
Europe-bound energy supplies--both oil and gas--if
Russia
didn't pay the debt.
The dispute flared last Monday when
Russia
reduced gas supplies to
Belarus
over
a debt of nearly $200 million and EU member
Lithuania
on
Wednesday reported a 40% drop in Russian gas supplies via
Belarus
.
The feud prompted EU Energy Commissioner Guenther Oettinger to describe the cut
as an "attack" on the whole European Union.
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