VIENNA (AP) — Russia’s state gas company Gazrom will stop supplying Austria’s OMV company early Saturday, the Austrian chancellor said Friday. He added that his country’s underground gas storage was full and that it had alternative, non-Russian supplies.
The closure follows OMV’s announcement that it would stop paying for Gazprom gas to its Austrian arm, to compensate for a 230 million euro arbitration award it won over an earlier closure of gas to its German subsidiary.
Chancellor Karl Nehammer said Austria has a secure supply of alternative fuel and that “no one will freeze.”
“Supplies are secure,” Nehammer said in a hastily called appearance at the chancellery. “Our gas storage facilities are full and we have sufficient capacity to purchase gas from other regions.
Representatives of OMV and Gazprom were not immediately available for comment.
