Austria has been preparing to cut off Russian gas supplies since the start of the military operation in Ukraine, Chancellor Karl Nehammer said after Gazprom notified Austria’s OMV that it would cut off supplies.
“What we have been preparing for since the beginning of the war in Ukraine has happened… I can promise: no one will freeze in winter, not a single apartment will be cold,” – Oe24 quotes Nehammer.
He added that Austria will not allow itself to be “blackmailed” by anyone, including Russia.
The Chancellor clarified that the country’s gas storage facilities are 93% full, which corresponds to annual consumption.
On November 13, OMV announced that it had won the arbitration procedure against Gazprom Export due to the temporary suspension of Russian gas supplies in the fall of 2022 and decided to recover €230 million plus interest and legal costs from the losing party.
After this, OMV received a notification from Gazprom Export about the complete cessation of gas supplies starting at 06:00 Central European Time (08:00 Moscow Time) on November 16.
The contract between OMV and Gazprom for the supply of gas to Austria extends until 2040. According to Kleine Zeitung, 98% of gas imports into Austria in December 2023 came from Russian supplies; In January 2024 the figure fell to 97% and in February to 87%, RBC recalls.
