GasTerra will no longer receive gas from Russia’s Gazprom from May 31 after refusing to agree to Moscow’s demands for payment in roubles, the two companies said on Monday, Reuters reports.
GasTerra, which buys and trades gas on behalf of the Dutch government, said it had contracted elsewhere for the 2 billion cubic meters of gas it had expected to receive from Gazprom through October.
The company is 50% owned by Dutch government entities and 25% each by Shell and Exxon.
“We understand GasTerra’s decision not to agree to Gazprom’s unilaterally imposed payment conditions,” Dutch Energy Minister Rob Jetten wrote on Twitter. “This decision will have no consequences for the physical delivery of gas to Dutch households.”
A GasTerra statement said the Dutch company had decided not to adopt the system that Russia had demanded, which involved the setting up of accounts that would be paid in euros and then swapped for rubles.
A statement from Gazprom said that its suspension of gas supplies to GasTerra will continue until payments are settled in line with the Russia-proposed scheme.
