The Latest Breaking News from Gazprom

On Wednesday, oil was steady after Russia cut gas supplies to Bulgaria and Poland. However, lingering concerns about Asian COVID-19 related lockdowns (especially in China) weigh on economic growth, and oil demand constrains the prices, writes Reuters. Brent crude futures rose $0.26, or 0.30%, to $105.25 a barrel by 0823 GMT. U.S.…

Kremlin accused of blackmail while Gazprom claims supply halted because of failure to pay in roubles. Plus, Santa takes on Sarah Palin

Polish and Bulgarian leaders have accused Russia of using gas supplies to blackmail their countries

Russia's Gazprom says it has halted gas deliveries to EU members Poland and Bulgaria, ostensibly because they refused to pay in Russian roubles. Ever since Western sanctions over the war in Ukraine began to hobble the Russian economy, fears had mounted that Moscow would use its energy supplies as a…

Figures show 1.9 million barrels of oil have been imported since Vladimir Putin’s invasion began

EU hits out at move that Kremlin says is response to countries’ failure to pay in roubles

The EU's chief executive on Wednesday branded as "blackmail" Russian giant Gazprom's move to halt supplies to some European customers, but said the bloc was working on a coordinated response to Moscow's escalation.

Vladimir Putin has demanded that ‘unfriendly’ countries pay for gas in roubles

Poland and Bulgaria accuse Gazprom of breaching contracts after it cuts off gas, demands payments in Russian roubles.

Bulgaria has paid for Russian gas deliveries for April and supplier Gazprom will be in breach of its current contract if it halts the flow, energy minister Alexander Nikolov told reporters on Wednesday.

Russia's Gazprom cut Poland and Bulgaria off from its gas on Wednesday for refusing to pay in roubles, and threatened to do the same to others, cranking up retaliation for Western sanctions imposed for Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.