VIENNA (AP) — Russian state gas company Gazprom halted deliveries to Austria early Saturday, according to Vienna utility OMV, after OMV said it would stop payments for the gas following an arbitration award.
The official halt to supplies came before dawn on Saturday after Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer held a hastily called news conference on Friday to emphasize that his country has a secure supply of alternative fuel for this winter.
OMV said it would stop paying Gazprom gas to its Austrian arm to compensate for a 230 million euro arbitration award it won from the International Chamber of Commerce over an earlier cut of gas supplies to its German subsidiary.
The Austrian utility company said in an email that there had been no gas deliveries since 6 a.m. on Saturday.
OMV said on Wednesday it has sufficient supplies to supply its customers with gas in the event of a possible disruption by Gazprom, and said its storage in Austria was more than 90% full.
“Putin is once again using energy as a weapon,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen wrote in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter. “He is trying to blackmail Austria and Europe by cutting off the gas supply. We are prepared for this and ready for the winter.”
Russia has cut off most natural gas supplies to Europe in 2022, citing disputes over payment in rubles, a move European leaders described as energy blackmail over their support for Ukraine against Russia’s invasion.
European governments had to scramble to provide alternative supplies at higher prices, much of which was liquefied natural gas brought in by ship from the US and Qatar.
According to Energy Minister Lenore Gewessler, Austria gets most of its natural gas from Russia, as much as 98% in December last year.
