Greece should resume its attempts to sell natural-gas monopoly Depa as soon as possible, the European Commission said Tuesday.

"Privatization of DEPA should resume as soon as possible," Simon O'Connor, a spokesman for European Union economic and monetary affairs Commissioner Olli Rehn said Tuesday. "Design and the execution of the privatization program is the responsibility of Greek authorities... it's an integral part of the economic adjustment program."

Russian giant OAO Gazprom withdrew its bid for Depa Monday, meaning that Greece failed to receive a single bid for the gas company before the Monday deadline expired. Gazprom was widely seen as the front-runner for Depa, and was said to have made a preliminary bid this year of about 900 million euros ($1.2 billion).

Mr. O'Connor added that any impact on the country's financial reforms would be covered in the third review of the second assistance program for Greece , which is currently being undertaken by the Commission and the European Central Bank.

"The state of play of the privatization program will be discussed in that context over coming days," he told reporters. "Any implications for the fiscal situation, debt sustainability will have to be discussed in the context of the mission."

Greek officials Monday blamed the EU for derailing the deal over concerns about the company's already tight grip on the European market. But earlier Tuesday the Commission said it had "no influence in the process and did not have any contact with Gazprom on this issue."

"The privatization process in Greece is the responsibility of the Greek authorities and is managed by the Hellenic Republic Asset Development Fund. The procedures and decisions on the privatization process are taken by the Board of HRADF in compliance with existing Greek and EU legislation," a spokesman said.

Gazprom supplies about one quarter of the EU's natural gas via a network of pipelines, although exports to Europe have slipped in recent years amid weaker demand and tougher competition. But in the past several years, the EU has sought to reduce its reliance on Russia for gas after supplies were disrupted in 2006 and 2009 when Moscow clashed with Ukraine , the main transit route, over alleged non-payment and price. Russia has bristled at EU attempts to liberalize the bloc's energy market, saying the rules harm Gazprom and consumers.

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