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☆ Moscow's decades-old gas ties with Europe lie in ruins
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( Vladimir Soldatkin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +10 min

Washington has long criticised Germany's policy of reliance on Russian energy, which until last year, Berlin had said was a means to improve relations. In October, he mooted an idea of a gas hub in Turkey to divert the Russian gas flows from the Baltic Sea and North-West Europe. The 20-year supply deal is worth about $30 billion in current gas prices. In Europe, gas prices hit record levels and international oil prices shortly after the special military operation began spiked close to their all-time high. Domestic gas prices are regulated by the government and there have been discussions about liberalising the gas market, a sensitive issue for Russian households.

☆ Russian state energy giant Gazprom is starting its own private security force, a move Ukraine fears will lead to a new Wagner-like mercenary army
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Russia's government is allowing energy giant Gazprom to start a private security outfit. Ukraine's Ministry of Defence drew comparisons with the notorious private army the Wagner Group. Experts said it's plausible that another Russian mercenary army is in the works. Russia's government gave its go-ahead for the energy giant to create a private security organization on February 4, under the pretext of securing the country's energy sector. "Ukrainians are handling Wagner, they are handling the Russian army."

☆ Russian piped gas exports to Europe falls 30% in January to new lows - data
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-31 | by ( Oksana Kobzeva | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

According to calculations, based on daily data of Russian gas exports via Ukraine and the TurkStream pipeline, Gazprom's gas exports to Europe fell in January to some 1.8 billion cubic metres (bcm) from 2.5 bcm in December. Gazprom halted gas supplies last year via the Yamal-Europe pipeline which traverses Belarus, Poland and terminates in Germany, as well as through the undersea Nord Stream 1 pipeline, which was blown up in September. According to European gas transmission group Entsog and Gazprom's daily reports on its transit via Ukraine, Gazprom's average daily gas supplies to Europe have declined to 58.1 million cubic metres (mcm) this month from 81.9 mcm in December. Gazprom has not disclosed its own statistics on exports and output since the start of the year. The company had said its gas exports outside ex-Soviet Union fell last year by 45% to 100.9 bcm.

☆ Analysis: Russia may hike taxes as military spending, oil price weigh on budget
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( Darya Korsunskaya | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

"The growing dependence of the budget on oil raises concerns," Alfa Bank said in a note that warned a decline in revenue from gas and oil product exports "looms on the horizon." Analysts say that as the government increased spending by more than a quarter in 2022, in part to finance its military in Ukraine, the oil price required to balance the budget jumped from $67 to $101 a barrel. "When there is a big gap between the actual price (of oil) and the balancing price, it cannot be sustainably covered by borrowing," said Natalia Orlova, chief economist at Alfa Bank. VAT rates, profit taxes and income tax would not be changed, Sazanov said, but other industries may face a higher tax bill. The measures are expected to net an additional 3.6 trillion roubles for the Russian budget over three years.

☆ Russian pipeline gas exports to Europe collapse to a post-Soviet low
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-28 | by ( Vladimir Soldatkin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Russian direct gas exports to Germany, Europe's largest economy, were halted in September following blasts at the Nord Stream pipelines in the Baltic Sea. Sweden and Denmark have both concluded that four leaks on Nord Stream 1 and 2 were caused by explosions, but have not said who might be responsible. Russian gas exports via the Nord Stream 1 pipeline totalled record-high 59.2 bcm last year. The 100.9 bcm of Russian gas pipeline supplies, which Gazprom defines as exports to "far abroad", or outside the former-Soviet Union, is one of the lowest since the collapse of the Soviet state in 1991. One of Gazprom's previous post-Soviet lows of gas sales to "far abroad" was at 117.4 bcm in 1995, according to Gazprom Export.

☆ Russia's Gazprom lifts immediate threat of cut to Moldova's gas supply
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] The logo of Moldovagaz energy company is on display at a gas filling station in Chisinau, Moldova October 28, 2021. Last week, Gazprom accused Ukraine of withholding gas supplies which pass through the country on the way to Moldova - something Kyiv denied - and said it could start reducing those flows from Monday. European gas prices rose last week on Gazprom's threat to cut flows to Moldova, as the supply route via Ukraine is the last functioning Russian gas corridor to Europe. Gas supplies are a constant source of tension between Russia and Moldova. Moldova and Ukraine last week accused Russia of using gas supplies as an instrument of blackmail, an accusation Moscow rejects.

☆ Polish regulator to appeal after Gazprom Nord Stream 2 fine annulled
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WARSAW, Nov 21 (Reuters) - UOKiK will appeal a ruling that annulled fines it imposed on Russia's Gazprom (GAZP.MM) and five other companies responsible for building the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, the Polish regulator said on Monday. UOKiK in 2020 fined Gazprom more than 29 billion zlotys ($6.33 billion) for building the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline without Warsaw's approval. It also imposed a total fine of 234 million zloty spread across five other companies involved in financing the project. The other companies affected by the fines were Engie Energy (ENGIE.PA), Uniper (UN01.DE), OMV (OMVV.VI), Shell (SHEL.L) and Wintershall. Poland was a staunch opponent of the Nord Stream 2 project because it feared Russia could use energy supplies to exert influence over European countries.

☆ Poland to take over Polish assets of Gazprom - report
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Companies Gazprom PAO FollowRzeczpospolita Polska FollowWARSAW, Nov 14 (Reuters) - Poland will take over the Polish assets of Russia's Gazprom (GAZP.MM) , the Rzeczpospolita daily reported on Monday. In September, Poland imposed sanctions on Gazprom and said its assets would be frozen. According to the daily newspaper the move concerns Gazprom's 48% stake in Europolgaz, the company that owns the Polish section of the Yamal pipeline. In April, Poland imposed sanctions on 50 Russian oligarchs and companies, including Gazprom, in a move to increase pressure on Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine. Simultaneously, Russia halted gas exports to Poland as Warsaw refused to pay in roubles.

☆ Poland says to take over Gazprom's Polish assets
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WARSAW, Nov 14 (Reuters) - Poland will take over Gazprom's (GAZP.MM) Polish assets, a minister said on Monday, adding the move concerned the Russian company's 48% stake in Europolgaz, which owns the Polish section of the Yamal gas pipeline. The compulsory administration will ensure security of the critical infrastructure used for gas transit, Polish Development Minister Waldemar Buda, said in an emailed statement. Russia at the same time halted gas exports to Poland after Warsaw refused to pay in roubles. While Europolgaz owns the 684-kilometer long Polish section of the Yamal, the pipeline is operated by Polish state-owned gas transmission company Gaz-System. After Gazprom was sanctioned, the pipeline operator did not have a partner for making key decisions on the infrastructure.

☆ Ukraine conflict, sanctions set to blow hole in Russia's finances
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( Darya Korsunskaya | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

While Russia's economy initially held up relatively well to the waves of Western sanctions imposed on it, the impact is beginning to show - in analysts' assessments, if not in those of the government. Analysts at state bank VTB (VTBR.MM) forecast the gap at an even wider 4-4.5 trillion roubles. The finance ministry sees non-energy revenue, or that related to economic activity, at 11.5% of GDP in 2023, around 7% higher than this year and on par with pre-pandemic levels. The finance ministry did not reply to a Reuters request for a comment. "I very much hope that the finance ministry will avoid outright money printing."

☆ Germany could seize property to speed LNG build-out -Handelsblatt
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-01 | by ( Arathy Somasekhar | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BERLIN, Nov 1 (Reuters) - Germany, racing to end its reliance on Russian gas, plans to introduce new regulation that will make it possible to expropriate property to link offshore liquid natural gas terminals to the grid, Handeslblatt reported. Until earlier this year, some 55 billion cubic metres of gas were pumped to Germany each year through Nord Stream 1. Nord Stream 2 never went into operation. Germany, which has for decades fuelled its vast industrial sector with copious supplies of Russian gas, pledged after Russia's invasion of Ukraine to cut its imports from Russia to zero by 2024. Four planned floating LNG terminals, including one at Lubmin where the sub-Baltic gas pipelines land, are key to that ambition.

Such sanctions would prohibit Gazprom from paying Ukraine transit fees, which analysts say could end Russian gas flows to Europe via the country. "(Sanctions) would make into reality the worst-case scenario that European governments have been preparing for all summer, a European gas market without Russian gas," said Natasha Fielding, head of EMEA gas pricing at Argus Media. "Transit through Ukraine is the only Russian gas delivery route to Europe still in use besides the Turkish Stream pipeline, which serves southeast European countries," she added. Gas flows via the only operational Ukraine transit route through Sudzha are currently around 42 million cubic metres a day. As a result, European gas storage was 88% full as of Sept. 26, although there are variations between countries.

☆ Recession indicators are flashing and Wall Street's fear gauge suggests stocks haven't hit bottom. Here's what you want to know.
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-16 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Traders on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) Spencer Platt/Getty Images1. Maybe that third one isn't quite so guaranteed — but history tells us the bond market's recession warning is a pretty reliable signal of a downturn in the near to medium-term. The two-year yield on Thursday jumped eight basis points, to 3.86%, 39 basis points above the 30-year Treasury yield of about 3.47%. The stock market's fear gauge is off, too, according to DataTrek. How confident are you in the current market?

☆ Kremlin set to receive $10 billion from state-run gas company Gazprom after it saw record profits this year
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-01 | by ( Matthew Loh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Russian state-run giant Gazprom is set to give $10 billion in dividends to the Kremlin. The Kremlin owns half of Gazprom, which saw a record net profit for the first half of 2022. Sign up for our newsletter to receive our top stories based on your reading preferences — delivered daily to your inbox. Gazprom on Tuesday reported net earnings of $41.75 billion, or 2.5 trillion rubles, from the start of 2022, up from 968 billion rubles in the first half of 2021, Insider's Brian Evans reported. Russian natural gas accounted for around 40% of Europe's gas power needs before the war in Ukraine.

☆ Russian state-energy giant Gazprom says European natural-gas prices could climb by another 60% this winter
▼ + stars: | 2022-08-17 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Russia's Gazprom said European natural-gas prices could gain another 60% this winter. European gas prices have been breaking record highs recently on the supply crunch. "European spot gas prices have broken through $2,500 (per 1,000 cubic metres). According to conservative estimates, if this trend continues, prices will exceed $4,000 per 1,000 cubic metres this winter," Gazprom said in a statement on Telegram on August 16. European benchmark Dutch wholesale natural-gas prices hit a record high of nearly 335 euros, or $341, per megawatt hour in the spring this year, according to Reuters.

☆ Russian state-energy giant Gazprom saw its natural-gas production in July slump to its lowest level since 2008
▼ + stars: | 2022-08-02 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Email address By clicking ‘Sign up’, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider as well as other partner offers and accept our Terms of Service and Privacy PolicyRussian state-energy giant Gazprom saw its daily natural-gas production slump to its lowest level since 2008, according to a Bloomberg calculation published on Monday. Europe depends on Russia for 40% of its natural-gas needs, such as cooking in homes and firing up power stations. As Russia is a major natural-gas supplier to Europe, the natural-gas crunch has sent prices soaring this year, in turn supporting the Kremlin's coffers. European countries including Germany and Italy are also working to wean themselves off Russian gas. To mitigate the impact from lower energy sales to Europe, Russian President Vladimir Putin is hawking Russia's energy exports to other markets, such as Asia — but at a discount.

☆ Everything you need to know about silovarchs — Russia's security elites — and the power they wield
▼ + stars: | 2022-04-10 | by ( Sam Tabahriti | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Russia's security elites are silovarchs, a term combining "oligarch" and "siloviki" ("people of force.") Analyst Hugo Crosthwaite said silovarchs are closer to President Vladimir Putin than oligarchs. According to Treisman, oligarchs do not hold a great deal of political influence, while silovarchs are more powerful. Table of Silovarchs Viktor Ivanov – former chair of the board for Almaz-Antei and Aeroflot – had a career in Soviet KGB and Russian FSB. Rashid Nurgaliev– former interior minister and deputy secretary of the Security Council – is Army General and worked for the FSB.

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