Ørsted and Shell no longer receive gas from Gazprom

Gazprom Export has suspended its gas supplies to the Danish energy group Ørsted and to Shell Energy Europe as of June 1. The Russian gas company justifies the step by saying that both companies did not want to pay in rubles. Both Ørsted and Shell Energy Europe do not feel obliged to do so given the terms of the contracts. "We at Ørsted stand by our refusal to pay in rubles, and we have prepared for this scenario so that we will still be able to supply gas to our customers," Ørsted CEO Mads Nipper said. At the same time, he referred to the need for the EU to become less dependent on Russian gas and to accelerate the development of renewables.

There is no direct gas pipeline between Denmark and Russia, so Russia cannot directly interrupt gas supplies to Denmark. However, according to a statement from Ørsted, it is now necessary to purchase additional gas volumes on a larger scale on the European gas market.

Shell Energy Europe is also affected by the Russian gas supply freeze, as Shell is also unwilling to pay in rubles. According to the contract, the maximum delivery volume is 1.2 billion cubic meters of gas. Since no money has been received for April, deliveries will be stopped, Gazprom Export announced. Shell is currently working to adapt to the new circumstances and "continue to supply gas to our customers in Europe through our multiple options."