Russian President Vladimir Putin this week said Russia will not supply gas, crude oil, or refined products to any countries that introduce price caps on Russian energy products, Bloomberg reported.
The European Union (EU) is considering new gas benchmarks and price caps as part of a package of measures to try and stem the impact of surging prices for natural gas and power on industry, business, and households.
It comes amid a tightening gas supply squeeze by Moscow. Russian state-owned Gazprom PJSC late on Sept. 2 said it would not reopen the key Nord Stream 1 pipeline from Russia to Germany after maintenance (GM Sept. 2, p. 35). The gas company later said a technical issue had been found, and the pipeline cannot operate again until it is repaired.
Putin claims that Nord Stream 1 could reopen if sanctions were eased on Russia, and that a turbine sent for repair in Germany was returned. According to a Bloomberg report, Germany previously said the turbine that was sent for repair is ready to be sent back to Russia, but Moscow claims paperwork issues are the obstacle.
EU ministers are scheduled to debate on Sept. 9 the details of a planned emergency intervention in the energy market.
Dutch TTF front-month gas (currently October), the European benchmark, traded lower this week, closing at €221.155 a megawatt-hour (MWh) on Sept. 8, up 3.4% on the day but well off the recent €339.195 a MWh hit on Aug. 26. That was close to the all-time high of €345 per MWh seen in early March.