Gazprom's oldest client in Central Europe terminates its contract

On December 11, the Austrian company OMV terminated the contract for the import of Russian gas, which was supposed to be valid until 2040. The company's website explains that this is due to Gazprom Export's breach of its contractual obligations.

From November 16, 2024, the Russian company stopped supplying gas to OMV after the Austrians forcibly collected 230 million euros from it, counting the October gas supplies against Gazprom's debt .

OMV said it has alternative sources of gas supply instead of Russian: its own production in Norway and Austria, other gas producers, as well as long-term volumes of liquefied natural gas (LNG).

OMV's gas storage facilities in Austria are currently approximately 85% full.

"Thanks to the successful efforts of our gas team over the past three years, OMV is well positioned to leverage our diversified portfolio of alternative gas sources, ensuring security of supply for our customers," said Alfred Stern, OMV Chairman and CEO.

• The Austrian state-owned company OMV previously received approximately half of all Russian gas transited by Ukraine. In 2023, thanks to Russian gas, Austria became a net energy exporter for the first time in 20 years.
• Austria was one of Gazprom's most loyal customers in the European Union. OMV bought Russiaчn gas for more than 50 consecutive years (since 1968) and continued to import it even after the start of the full-scale Russian-Ukrainian war, when most other EU countries switched to supplies from Norway, the US and Qatar.