Austrian energy company OMV has announced that it has terminated its long-term gas supply contract with Russian energy giant Gazprom with immediate effect due to “several fundamental breaches of the contract”. The agreement was originally set to expire in 2040. TASR took over the report from the DPA agency.
In mid-November, Gazprom stopped gas supplies to the Austrian company OMV, which on November 13 won an arbitration court in Germany against Gazprom for 230 million euros in connection with irregular gas supplies to its German division. OMV, in an attempt to obtain this compensation, did not pay for October gas supplies worth 230 million euros. Gazprom subsequently stopped exporting the commodity to Austria.
Politicians initially celebrated the long-term gas supply contract between OMV and Gazprom, which was concluded in 2006, but then became the target of criticism. This is because it includes a controversial clause that requires payments for gas, even if it is not bought and taken. This is at odds with the European Union’s plan to quickly cut gas supplies from Russia following its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
OMV, which only supplies industrial customers in Austria, ruled out the possibility of supply problems. “Today, we can rely on a diversified portfolio of alternative gas sources and thus guarantee supply security for our customers.” said OMV CEO Alfred Stern.
This is gas from OMV’s own production in Norway as well as from external gas producers and liquefied natural gas (LNG). In addition, the Austrian company’s gas storage tanks are currently approximately 85% full.
