All Russian gas supplies via Ukraine to Bulgaria, Turkey, Greece and Macedonia were halted on Tuesday as a result of the Moscow-Kiev price row, Bulgaria’s Economy Ministry said.
Supplies to Romania were cut by 75% and Austria said that deliveries of Russian gas had fallen to 10% of the expected amount.
”As of 3.30am supplies … to Bulgaria as well as the transit to Turkey, Greece and Macedonia have been suspended,” the ministry said in a statement. ”We are in a crisis situation.”
Bulgaria, which relies almost entirely on Russian gas for its needs, will be worst hit as, like Macedonia, it has no access to alternative pipeline routes.
The ministry told industrial users to switch to alternative fuels such as oil and urged households to start using other means for heating rather than central heating that runs on gas.
Prime Minister Sergei Stanishev called an emergency meeting later on Tuesday to discuss the situation.
Bulgaria, where temperatures dropped below minus 15 degrees overnight, started pumping a maximum 4,3-million cubic metres of gas from its sole gas storage facility, the ministry said.
The country currently consumes about 11-million cubic metres of gas a day.
Turkey’s Energy Minister Hilmi Guler told reporters on Tuesday that the country has raised supplies of Russian gas delivered via the Blue-Stream pipeline which passes under the Black Sea to 48-million cubic metres a day from a previous 40-million, and would use liquid natural gas sources and natural gas stores.
Greece gets additional supplies from Ankara.
Meanwhile, Hungary’s gas distributor said in a statement that the amount of natural gas piped into western Hungary from Austria fell on Tuesday as a result of Russia cutting supplies to Ukraine.
Hungary is still receiving the bulk of its natural gas via Ukraine, although Ukraine cut the daily delivery from 38-million to 30-million cubic metres on Monday.
The head of the distribution company FGSZ, Janos Zsuga, said in the morning that the same amount of gas was expected on Tuesday.
Hungary’s gas consumption forecast for Tuesday is 68-million to 70-million cubic metres. The European Union newcomer is drawing on underground gas stores to compensate for reduced supply from its neighbours.
Domestic production only covers about a fifth of Hungary’s natural gas requirements of 13-billion to 14-billion cubic metres a year. The bulk of its imported gas originates in Russia. – Reuters and Sapa