Russia Halts Gas Supply to Finland Amid Payments Dispute – Reuters

By Terje Solsvik

OSLO – On Saturday, Russia’s Gazprom stopped gas exports to Finland, marking a significant escalation in an ongoing energy payments dispute with Western countries.

Gazprom Export has insisted that European nations pay for Russian gas in roubles as a response to sanctions resulting from Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, a condition that Finland has rejected.

This development coincides with Finland’s application to join the NATO military alliance, a strategic decision motivated by Russia’s actions in Ukraine.

According to Gasgrid Finland, the operator of the country’s gas system, "Gas imports through the Imatra entry point have been stopped." Imatra serves as the gateway for Russian gas into Finland.

On Friday, Finnish state-owned wholesaler Gasum announced that Gazprom had signaled that supplies would cease from 0400 GMT on Saturday. Both Gasum and Gazprom confirmed on Saturday that gas flows had been halted. Gasum stated, "Natural gas supplies to Finland under Gasum’s supply contract have been cut off," adding that they would begin sourcing gas from alternative suppliers through the Balticconnector pipeline for the upcoming summer season.

The Balticconnector connects Finland to Estonia’s gas grid, allowing for alternative gas access. Gazprom’s decision to cut off supplies came after Gasum did not adhere to the new Russian regulations that mandated payments in roubles.

Finland relies heavily on Russian gas; however, gas constitutes only around 5% of its total annual energy consumption. Many European contracts are priced in euros or dollars, and Gazprom had already severed gas supply to Bulgaria and Poland last month for similar noncompliance.

Both Gasum and Finnish authorities have stated they were prepared for a halt in Russian gas supplies and are confident in managing without them. Gasgrid assured on Saturday that "the Finnish gas system is in balance both physically and commercially."

Additionally, Finland announced on Friday its agreement to charter a storage and regasification vessel from a U.S.-based company to help replace the supplies from Russia starting in the fourth quarter of this year. This vessel will be used to convert liquefied natural gas (LNG) back into its gaseous form.