Russia Shifting Gas Supplies Away from West
Russian giant Gazprom saw its natural gas exports to customers outside the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) plunge by 43% between January and October as Russia drastically cut its pipeline gas deliveries to Europe.
Gazprom’s gas supply to countries other than CIS members – Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan – averaged 91.2 bcm to its other customers in Europe and Asia, the Russian state firm said on its Telegram channel on Tuesday quoted by Montel.
According to the report, exports amounted to 91.2 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas, which is 67.6 bcm less than in the first ten months of 2021.
“Gazprom supplies gas according to confirmed applications,” the company wrote in a Telegram post.
Last year, the company increased gas exports to non-CIS countries by 5.8 billion cubic meters, up to 185.1 bcm.
Gazprom’s natural gas production dropped by almost 19% in the ten months to October compared to the same period of last year.
Meanwhile, exports to China via the Power of Siberia gas pipeline have continued to grow under the Russian company’s long-term bilateral contract. According to Gazprom, deliveries via the mega gas pipeline regularly exceed daily contractual obligations.
Gazprom said that demand for its gas had dropped, especially in Europe, which accounted for most of the decline in global gas consumption between January and October.
Soaring gas prices and Europe’s efforts to replace Russian gas deliveries have forced many industries to curtail or halt operations as energy costs have surged.
Gazprom started pumping gas to China via the 3,000km (1,864-mile) pipeline in 2019. Also known as the Eastern Route, the Power of Siberia’s capacity is 61 billion cubic meters of gas per year, including 38 billion cubic meters for export. Moscow and Beijing are currently planning another major gas route through Mongolia called Soyuz Vostok. Gazprom is finalizing construction details for the project.