Austria halts russian gas, OMV wins 230m Euro compensation
The Austrian corporation OMV announced on Friday that it will suspend gas supplies from Russia. This follows its victory in arbitration proceedings against Gazprom, where OMV was awarded 230 million euros in compensation.
8:42 PM EST, November 15, 2024
The Russian energy giant Gazprom informed OMV that starting Saturday, November 16, it would suspend gas supplies to Austria. This decision came shortly after OMV won 230 million euros in compensation for disruptions in gas supplies that occurred in the summer of 2022. Full supplies were restored by September 2022. Russian gas had been transported to Austria via pipelines under a long-term agreement valid until 2040.
The International Chamber of Commerce's arbitration ruled on Wednesday, November 13, that compensation was due to OMV for irregular gas supplies to Austria. The Austrian corporation plans to deduct the nearly quarter of a billion euros awarded from future Gazprom invoices. With this development, Austria becomes the penultimate EU state to lose oil supplies from Russia. Only Hungary remains on Gazprom's list.
Gazprom turned off the taps. Austria was prepared
OMV assures that despite the Russian suspension of supplies, it is ready to meet its customers' demands. The company has secured alternative gas supplies from Norway and European LNG terminals, enabling it to continue fulfilling its obligations.
In response to Gazprom's announcement, gas prices on the European market temporarily increased. On the Dutch TTF exchange, December contracts rose from 46 to nearly 47.3 euros per MWh (approximately 49 dollars per MWh), and January contracts from 46.2 to 47.6 euros per MWh (approximately 50 dollars per MWh). However, after a short time, the quotations returned to their previous levels.
