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Post by Bonobo on Jan 7, 2009 21:36:58 GMT 1
My briefing on the situation: On 1 January Russian gas supplier Gazprom cut off gas supplies to Ukraine after the two sides hadn`t reached an agreement on gas prices in 2009. Russians demand 250$ (market price for other European countries, including Poland, is 400$) while Ukraine offered 200$, claiming that the transit tariffs must be increased too. Ukraine is an intermediary between Russia and the rest of Europe, and it it is paid for allowing gas transfer through its territory. However, Russians didn`t agree to higher transit tariffs, but still demanded more money for their gas from Ukraine.
Yesterday Russians cut off the other gas supplies which were going through Ukraine to the West, e..g, to Slovakia, the Czech Republic , Greece, Austria etc. These countries aren`t receiving any gas at all.
It seems that Russians are playing a game with EU. They want to proove that Ukraine and other transit countries are unreliable and that is why there is an urgent need to build the Nord Stream, a new gas pipe across the Baltic Sea, connecting Russia directly to Germany, without any go-betweens. As both Germany and Russia seem unable to carry the cost of the project, it requires the sponsorship of all EU. Russians are playing a game with Ukraine and Europe to persuade European partners to join the project.
Row halts European gas supplies
A Ukrainian worker checks gas containers at a depot near Kiev (06/01/2009)
Several countries are relying on their own limited reserves of gas
Exports of Russian gas to Europe via Ukraine appear to have completely stopped amid a dispute over gas supplies between the two countries.
Ukraine's Naftogaz said Russia's Gazprom halted supplies at 0744 local time (0544 GMT). Gazprom said Ukraine had closed the last remaining pipeline.
The EU depends on Russia for about a quarter of its total gas supplies, some 80% of which is pumped through Ukraine.
Gazprom says Ukraine has been stealing gas in transit to Europe.
The list of countries reporting a total halt of Russian supplies via Ukraine now includes Romania, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Bosnia-Hercegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Hungary, Macedonia and Serbia.
Italy and Austria say they have received only 10% of their expected supply.
Hungary's gas transmission company said it had limited the natural gas consumption for industrial users, Reuters news agency reported.
The country expects to use 64m cubic metres of gas on Wednesday, down from 68m cu m, the company said.
The row comes amid a cold snap across Europe that is likely to push up demand for gas.
Bulgaria says it has sufficient supplies for just a few more days.
Many other countries are now tapping strategic reserves, built up to cope with just such a development, says the BBC's Europe correspondent Nick Thorpe.
Russia and Ukraine have been blaming each other for the disruption to Europe's energy supplies.
Gazprom has accused Ukraine of an "unprecedented" shutdown of transit pipelines. It says only 40m cu m of gas is getting through to Europe, instead of 225m cu m.
The chief executive of Gazprom, Alexei Miller, said Ukraine was stealing 15% of gas delivered across its borders and that theft was "increasing by the hour".
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said the gas had been stolen "not from Russia but from western consumers because they have bought this commodity and paid for it".
Naftogaz said Russia had cut gas transit supplies by more than two-thirds and listed nine countries, including Germany, Poland, and Hungary, which would receive reduced supplies as a result.
Talks between Naftogaz and Gazprom aimed at resolving the crisis are due to resume in Moscow on Thursday - after the Christmas public holiday on Wednesday in Russia and Ukraine.
Gazprom will also discuss the matter with the EU on the same day.
The European Commission has demanded that gas supplies to the EU are immediately restored.
'Gas stolen'
Russia stopped supplying gas to Ukraine on New Year's Day in a row about unpaid bills and the failure to agree a new pricing contract.
On Monday, Gazprom decided to cut exports through Ukrainian pipelines by a fifth to compensate for the amount it said Ukraine was siphoning off supplies intended for Europe for its own use.
Ukraine has denied stealing gas, saying technical problems are disrupting the onward flow of gas to Europe.
The new EU member states in central and eastern Europe are heavily - and in some cases entirely - dependent on Russian gas imports.
However, Germany and Italy together account for nearly half of the Russian gas consumed in the EU.
Gazprom has promised to pump extra supplies through other pipelines - the Yamal from Arctic Russia through Belarus to Germany, and the Blue Stream to Turkey under the Black Sea.
A similar row between Gazprom and Ukraine at the beginning of 2006 led to gas shortages in several EU countries.
Komorowski – Russia playing politics with gas
thenews.pl
05.01.2009
Speaker of Parliament Bronislaw Komorowski told Polish Radio One
this morning that the gas conflict between Russia and Ukraine is not
just a trade dispute.
"There is no doubt that the Russian-Ukrainian relations concern
Polish interests and needs, as well as the EU, because this is a
matter of energy security and fuels supplies," Komorowski said. He
also noted that Russia maybe using the dispute to interfere in
internal matter of Ukraine.
On the one hand there is "the conflict of interests between Russian
and Ukrainian companies and economies.". "If it is just a matter of
setting [gas] prices then this is normal in any business," the
Speaker said. "On the other hand there are some elements signifying that Russia is trying to play on the internal situation in Ukraine in order to destabilise the country," he added.
This sicuation is not just bad for Ukraine. According to Speaker
Komorowski, Russia is attempting to use the gas issue to exert
political pressure in the region. "This is not right and this is a
threat. It means energy is being used as a weapon in Poland's
direct neighbourhood, " Komorowski stressed.
Bronislaw Komorowski also told Polish Radio that the gas conflict
should give Ukrainians a clear signal that it's worthwhile being a
part of the EU, as it protects its members from Russia's
blackmail. "Russia can't blackmail the whole European Union,"
Komorowski stressed.
Poland cuts gas supply to industry
thenews.pl
06.01.2009
A decrease in gas supplies by 7 million cubic metres from Russia's
gazprom was reported in Poland on Tuesday forcing the government to
ask the national gas supplier to cut deliveries to industry.
"The rate of gas coming both from Ukraine and Belarus is now lower
than the country's demand," said economy vice-minister Adam
Szejnfeld, adding that Poland has been forced to ask the national
gas supplier to cut gas deliveries to industry. He reassured,
however, that national reserves will remain untouched.
Poland and other central and eastern European countries have
experienced a shortfall of gas since Russia turned off supplies to
Ukraine following a dispute over payments.
Vice PM Waldemar Pawlak said that Poland was going to ask Russia
facilitate the use of greater gas transfer via the Yamal - Europe
gas pipeline.
Pawlak emphasized that so far the reported shortfalls have have not affected individual users.
The head of the ruling Civic Platfrom's parliamentary caucus,
Zbigniew Chlebowski, said: "Both economy and individual clients do
not have to worry at the moment, as Poland has currently rich gas
reserves."
One of Poland's neighbours, Slovakia, has announced it will
introduce an economic "state of emergency" after a the decline of
gas supply from Gazprom by 70 percent. Austria says it is
experiencing a 75 percent shortfall.
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Post by valpomike on Jan 7, 2009 23:59:37 GMT 1
Those dam Russians, something must be done, to stop this bull.
Mike
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Post by Bonobo on Jan 8, 2009 0:51:32 GMT 1
Those dam Russians, something must be done, to stop this bull. Mike They are not a bull, they have always been a bear!  |
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Post by valpomike on Jan 8, 2009 5:37:08 GMT 1
They are full of BULL ----.
Mike
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Post by tufta on Jan 8, 2009 8:48:25 GMT 1
It seems that Russians are playing a game with EU. They want to proove that Ukraine and other transit countries are unreliable and that is why there is an urgent need to build the Nord Stream, a new gas pipe across the Baltic Sea, connecting Russia directly to Germany, without any go-betweens. As both Germany and Russia seem unable to carry the cost of the project, it requires the sponsorship of all EU. Yes, it seems so. But besides this time they reaaly need money badly. btw tHe pipeline through Baltic is risky for the nature and more expensive than additional pipeline on land. Such onland pipeline can enter European Union directly from Russia into Latvia, so there will not be any in-betweens. |
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Post by locopolaco on Jan 10, 2009 6:01:32 GMT 1
i think this is also a strong arm move on Ukraine. russia is definitely trying to destabilize them in the process but a lot of this is based on Ukraine's mis-steps.
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Post by valpomike on Jan 10, 2009 20:04:17 GMT 1
Just got word, after papers are signed, it will again work.
Mike
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Post by Bonobo on Jan 10, 2009 21:55:43 GMT 1
Just got word, after papers are signed, it will again work. Mike ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D Not so fast, Mike. Still, Poland is in much better situation than Slovakia. news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7819429.stm#map
Europe homes freeze amid gas row
Woman on an unheated tram in Sofia, Bulgaria, on 8/1/09
Some of Bulgaria's public transport is without heating
Hundreds of thousands of homes in Europe remain without heating amid plunging temperatures as a gas row between Russia and Ukraine continues.
More than 15 countries have been hit by the shutdown of Russian supplies.
Serbia and Bosnia-Hercegovina are among the worst hit as many homes rely on heating stations that only run on gas.
The EU said it had reached agreement on an observer mission to monitor gas flows, but it was unclear when supplies would resume.
EU energy spokesman Ferran Tarradellas told the BBC that EU observers would leave for Ukraine on Friday.
But there has been no confirmation of the deal from the Russian side, which had, at the last minute, demanded Russian monitors be included on the team.
Ukraine's Naftogaz said it had no objection to Russians being included.
It is hoped that once an agreement is set and the monitors start work, gas will start flowing back into Europe, the BBC's Gabriel Gatehouse in Kiev says.
But the acrimonious disagreement over gas prices between Ukraine and Russia remains, which leaves the crisis far from settled, he adds.
Protests
An estimated 100,000 people in Serbia were left without heating when Russian gas supplies to Europe were halted on Wednesday, the BBC's Helen Fawkes in Belgrade said.
With sub-zero temperatures across the country, at least eight towns and cities were completely cut off.
Graph showing EU's gas supplies
Dependence on Russia for gas:
100% dependent on Russia: Latvia, Slovakia, Finland, Estonia
More than 80% dependent: Bulgaria, Lithuania, Czech Republic
More than 60% dependent: Greece, Austria, Hungary
Source: European Council on Foreign Relations, 2006 figures
Most of its gas-powered heating stations have switched to alternative energy but some can only operate on gas and have had to shut down completely, our correspondent adds.
It has also received emergency gas from Hungary and Germany.
In neighbouring Bosnia, some 72,000 homes were without heating in temperatures as low as -15C. Leaders warned its gas reserves would last only a few more days.
Angry Bulgarians protested in front of the Ukrainian embassy in Sofia on Thursday, holding placards accusing Russia and Ukraine of being "gas terrorists", the Associated Press reports.
Other countries reporting a total halt in gas supplies included Romania, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Croatia, Greece, Hungary, Macedonia and Austria.
The Czech EU presidency said late Thursday, following talks with Russian and Ukrainian officials in Brussels, that agreement had been reached with Russia over the monitors.
"This deployment should lead to the Russian supplies of gas to EU member states being restored," it said in a statement, without specifying when monitors would be in place or when gas supplies would resume.
The EU depends on Russia for about a quarter of its total gas supplies, some 80% of which are pumped via Ukraine.
Russia cut gas to Ukraine itself a week ago as the row over pricing and allegedly unpaid bills escalated.
Ukraine denies Russian accusations that it is stealing gas passing through export pipelines on its territory.  |
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Post by Bonobo on Aug 24, 2009 16:18:35 GMT 1
Poland, Russia unlikely to sign gas deal by Sept.
WARSAW, Aug 12 (Reuters) - Poland is unlikely to sign a gas deal with Russia during Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's visit to Warsaw at the beginning of September, Polish Economy Minister Waldemar Pawlak said on Wednesday.
A further round of negotiations between Poland and Russia on gas deliveries aimed at securing full supplies from 2010 is set for late August following the failure of talks in July, but this would leave insufficient time to rubber-stamp a potential deal.
"The Warsaw meeting did not bring fruit. We hope we can finish the negotiations before the (Russian) prime minister's visit to Poland," Pawlak told Public Radio. "There is no chance for an agreement to be signed on September 1."
Pawlak did not rule out the possibility that negotiations might drag on until year-end, forcing the government to seek alternatives to Russian supplies in order to ensure full gas deliveries.
"A special team at the ministry is working on finding alternative solutions now," Pawlak said.
Poland, which imports about two thirds of its gas from Russia, faces an annual shortfall of some 2.5 billion metres from 2010 and Russia is practically the only supplier capable of filling the gap.
Poland receives gas from Russia via the Yamal pipeline, which is capable of carrying about 30 billion cubic metres of gas annually to Europe.
But the Polish government wants to diversify its sources by building a liquefied natural gas terminal.
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Post by Bonobo on Sept 21, 2009 21:09:20 GMT 1
Poland faces gas shortage if no Russia deal inked
KRYNICA, Poland, Sept 10 (Reuters) - Poland faces shortages of as much as 800 million cubic metres of gas this year if it fails to reach a long-term supply deal with Russia, a deputy treasury minister said on Thursday.
In January, some Polish companies led by state-controlled chemical producers were forced to cut production after a Russia-Ukraine row reduced gas supplies by a quarter.
Since then, Warsaw has been in discussions with Moscow, which supplies some two-thirds of Poland's gas needs, over a new long-term contract after eliminating an Ukrainian intermediary, but the talks have been at a stalemate.
"This year, Poland may be 700 to 800 million cubic metres short," Deputy Treasury Minister Mikolaj Budzanowski told reporters. "The shortfall will depend on the winter and the requirements of manufacturers. "
The two sides were scheduled for further talks later this month.
"In October we must reach some kind of an agreement," Budzanowski said.
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Post by tufta on Nov 17, 2009 22:27:44 GMT 1
The Molotov-Ribbentrop Pipeline
Germany is aiding Russia's run around Central Europe.
By ALEXANDROS PETERSEN
Rügen is best known as a popular German tourist destination. But now the Baltic Sea island has taken on a new role as staging point for an energy project that is as ambitious as it is controversial: the Nord Stream gas pipeline from Russia to Germany. Next spring the first pipeline segments will likely be dropped to the sea floor in a line that will wind through Russian, Finish, Swedish, Danish and German waters—conspicuously avoiding the Baltic states and Poland.
This is because the Nord Stream project is part of an exclusionary agreement between Moscow and Berlin—nicknamed in circumvented Warsaw the "Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact," after the 1939 Soviet-Nazi deal to carve up Poland. It would have been much cheaper to build an overland pipeline through Eastern Europe, but the purpose of Nord Stream from the beginning was to bypass countries Moscow still considers to be part of its sphere of influence.
Russia's geopolitical message here is clear: It doesn't trust the new EU member states as transit countries or even as energy consumers and is willing to incur enormous costs to bypass them. The other message—or implied threat—is that Nord Stream will allow the Kremlin to cut off gas deliveries to Eastern Europe through current pipelines without reducing energy supplies to Germany. But what sort of message does Germany, a fellow EU member, intend to send to its neighbors?
Nord Stream was championed by former German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder, who now serves as one of its executives. From within her previous coalition government, current Chancellor Angela Merkel lobbied successfully for EU endorsement of the project even though the pipeline consortium is registered in Switzerland and controlled by Russia's Gazprom. Of the dozens of companies involved in the pipeline's construction, not one is from the Baltics, Central or Eastern Europe.
Germany's recent election results produced a ripple of hope among the countries on Russia's periphery. With the traditionally pro-Moscow Social Democratic Party out of the governing coalition, would Mrs. Merkel perhaps seek to change the terms of the Nord Stream agreement and push Russia to alter the route so that the pipeline would cross the waters or territories of Eastern EU members? Perhaps she would lobby Moscow to include also East European companies in the Nord Stream consortium? At least, it was hoped, Berlin would throw its weight behind the Nabucco pipeline, which seeks to improve Central and Eastern Europe's energy security with the help of Caspian and Middle Eastern gas. After all, Germany's RWE is part of the Nabucco consortium and Mr. Schröder's pro-EU former foreign minister, Joschka Fischer, is now a lobbyist for the project.
Recent progress on Nord Stream, however, has dashed those hopes. The Nordic countries had until now delayed the project's approval, raising environmental concerns, which most interpreted as unease about the pipeline's geopolitical implications. Last Thursday, though, Finland and Sweden—which holds the European Union presidency until the end of the year—joined Denmark in signing off on the project. It is this political momentum that has spurred the rush to get pipeline segments out to Rügen and other staging points. The very realistic prospect that construction on Moscow's pet project might begin early next year is a symbolic blow to those seeking to reduce Europe's energy dependence on Russian gas. Most of all, it is a blow to any semblance of EU unity on energy security. Russia's neighbors, both within and without the EU, are already reeling from a sense of Euro-Atlantic abandonment following Washington's "reset" policy toward Russia and the EU's lackluster outreach to its Eastern neighbors.
It would be unrealistic to expect Berlin to change tack on Nord Stream so late in the game. But a newly re-elected Angela Merkal should carefully consider the foreign policy messages that come with laying pipe on the Baltic Sea floor.
In order to reassure fellow EU members and the institution as a whole, Berlin would do well to support what the European Commission considers its "strategic priority": The so-called Southern Corridor, which includes Nabucco and several smaller pipeline projects. As a European heavyweight, Germany's mere rhetorical and diplomatic support would go a long way in encouraging EU energy unity. Most importantly, it would send the message to Moscow that its "divide and conquer" energy policy has its limits.
Mr. Petersen is Dinu Patriciu Fellow for Trans-Atlantic Energy Security and associate director of the Eurasia Energy Center at the Atlantic Council. online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703567204574499150087261242.html
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Post by Bonobo on Nov 18, 2009 19:56:58 GMT 1
The Molotov-Ribbentrop Pipeline
Germany is aiding Russia's run around Central Europe.
Tufta, are you intending to apply some kind of soothing therapy to Mike by means of such articles? ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D |
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Post by valpomike on Nov 20, 2009 2:57:25 GMT 1
Told you all, never trust the Russians or Germans !!!!!
Mike
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Post by tufta on Nov 20, 2009 11:06:08 GMT 1
Told you all, never trust the Russians or Germans !!!!! Mike and Americans? |
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Post by valpomike on Nov 20, 2009 18:14:25 GMT 1
Just until we remove this bad leadership, and go back to normal again, with the Republicans. Hope soon.
Mike
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Post by Bonobo on Nov 27, 2009 21:49:46 GMT 1
TRANSITIONS ONLINE: Poland: Reliable Source?
by Marynia Kruk
12 November 2009
While paying lip service to diversifying its supply of natural gas, Warsaw inks a long-term deal with Gazprom.
WARSAW | In late October, nearly a year after the Russian-Ukrainian crisis left Poland with a 2.5 billion cubic meter shortfall of natural gas for 2009, Polish state-controlled gas monopoly PGNiG and Gazprom agreed to significantly increase the amount of the fuel Poland will buy from the Russian company starting next year.
If approved by the Polish and Russian governments, the deal would see Gazprom’s gas exports to Poland rise to 10.27 billion cubic meters a year through 2037 instead of the current 7 billion cubic meters. Whether the deal undermines Poland’s oft-repeated supply diversification goals or ensures a steady supply of natural gas remains to be seen.
Radoslaw Dudzinski, PGNIG's deputy chief in charge of strategy, said the value of the contract is a function of the nine-month moving average of light and heavy gas oil prices and is adjusted quarterly.
“At current crude oil prices and the zloty's exchange rate to the dollar, the 10.27 billion cubic meter contract is worth about 7.7 billion zlotys ($2.8 billion), but that can change quickly as the price of oil or exchange rates shift," said Kamil Kliszcz, an energy analyst at BRE Bank in Warsaw.
One thing the agreement cannot forestall is a repeat of the situation that occurred in January, when Russia closed the tap on Ukraine, which in turn stopped pumping gas on to Poland and other European countries.
Poland receives most of its Russian gas via Belarus, but some transits through Ukraine. Map by East European Gas Analysis.
During the standoff, Poland could have used more interconnectors, which would have enabled it to import last-minute supplies from other countries in the European Union, as well as an up-and-running liquefied natural gas terminal. There are plans to build such a terminal, but it won’t be ready until 2014 at the earliest.
The EU’s largest ex-communist member has managed to cope with the shortfall this year thanks to sluggish economic growth, which has limited demand for gas. But now that Poland has locked in an additional supply, it is unclear whether GDP growth and annual gas consumption will start increasing quickly enough to absorb the extra gas as soon as 2010, when the new agreement comes into effect, analysts said.
SUPPLY SECURITY
“The agreement ensures a predictable, stable supply [of gas] in the future, based on a long-term contract,” Economy Minister Waldemar Pawlak told the daily Dziennik Gazeta Prawna. “If there will be a bit too much of this commodity, nothing bad will happen.”
State-controlled PGNiG echoed Pawlak’s lack of concern about over-supply when it said it expects to sell about 18 billion cubic meters of gas by 2015, up from 14 billion now, mainly thanks to several gas-fired power plants in the works.
But analysts are concerned the added volume will come on-stream too soon to be consumed by the plants, which haven’t been built yet.
“PGNiG may have to pay for gas it doesn’t want,” said Pawel Burzynski, an energy analyst at Polish bank BZ WBK in Warsaw.
Under the terms of the contract with Gazprom, PGNiG would have to pay a fine if it bought less gas than a specified yearly minimum.
Poland relies overwhelmingly on coal-fired power plants for its electricity. Cleaner-burning, gas-fired power plants are among the favored solutions to the expected carbon dioxide emissions limits Poland will face in coming years.
“The EU climate change package puts great pressure on [Poland] to reduce its coal burn,” said Dieter Helm, an Oxford University professor and adviser on energy policy to the British government.
PGNiG, which says Polish per capita gas consumption is two-thirds lower than in Western Europe, is itself involved in three power-plant joint ventures that will require about 1.2 billion cubic meters of gas per year, the company said. Other Polish electricity producers are planning to build gas-fired plants expected to use about 2 billion cubic meters per year.
Over-supply concerns are exacerbated by Poland’s plans to build a liquefied natural gas terminal on the Baltic coast. The terminal, scheduled for completion in 2014 and with capacity to supply Poland with about a third of its gas needs, would free the country to buy LNG from any global producer.
Earlier this year, PGNiG agreed with Qatargas for the Qatari company to start shipping liquefied gas to Poland in 2014. Government and PGNiG officials hailed the deal as a decisive step toward energy diversification, but detractors noted the gas was more expensive than Russian gas.
DIVERSIFICATION
Given Russia’s history as Poland’s former imperial and communist-era master, successive Polish governments have for years paid lip service to gas supply diversification away from the country’s large neighbor to the east, but actual implementation of such a strategy is time-consuming and costly.
“Russian gas is the cheapest,” Burzynski said. “But as a society we don’t want to pay more, so effectively we don’t want to diversify.”
Pawel Magierowski, a partner at the Baker & McKenzie law firm’s energy practice in Warsaw, says that attitude is changing.
“From a short-term business perspective, it makes sense to keep buying from Russia and accept the risks. But currently we are seeing the beginning of acceptance of the decision to pay more for security,” Magierowski said.
During January’s gas conflict between Russia and Ukraine, Poland was not completely cut off from gas supplies, as it was still receiving gas via Belarus, but the shortfall forced PGNiG to cut supply to industrial consumers. Polish households, which use gas for cooking and heating, were spared, but chemical and fertilizer factories had to grind to a halt.
That stoppage, and possible future gas supply problems, in turn spooked potential investors just as Poland gears up to privatize many state-controlled chemical and fertilizer companies in a bid to wipe out a yawning budget deficit.
“The current contract, which gives more volume, is good for the chemical-fertilizer companies,” Burzynski said.
INTERCONNECTORS
Even if it wanted to diversify, Poland has no way of quickly shifting its source of imports to a supplier other than Russia. It imports Russian gas via pipelines running through Belarus and Ukraine and extracts the rest of its annual gas supply, about one-third, domestically. For now, the map of Central Europe’s pipeline network dictates that no matter what deal Polish and Russian gas companies strike, the country will be vulnerable to the fraught relationship between Ukraine and Russia.
Burzynski said interconnectors, pipelines that can send gas both ways between countries’ fragmented gas pipeline systems, are the cheapest way for Poland to diversify its supply. They are a solution the European Union favors, and they proved key in easing the effects of the January crisis on many European countries.
“The projects linked to other directions, such as the LNG terminal or links to the gas systems of Germany, the Czech Republic, or Slovakia should be treated as complementary, guaranteeing more flexibility in crisis situations,” Economy Minister Pawlak said.
Poland has just one interconnector – to the German network. Although Polish state-owned gas pipeline operator Gaz-System SA is working to increase this interconnector’s capacity by two-thirds, to 1.5 billion cubic meters per year, the capacity pales in comparison with the 14 billion cubic meters Poland consumes annually.
The company is working on only one other interconnector, near the town of Cieszyn, which will enable Poland to import 0.5 billion cubic meters from the Czech system by 2011, said Gaz-System spokeswoman Malgorzata Polkowska.
Asked whether there were other planned interconnector projects, Polkowska mentioned the Baltic Pipe, which would link Poland to the Danish gas system, and another one with Lithuania. But both projects are on hold as the Polish companies that might buy gas from these two directions say they do not need these links, Polkowska said.
Andrzej Szczesniak, an independent energy expert based in Warsaw, said more interconnectors to Germany would break PGNiG’s monopoly in Poland. He likened successive Polish administrations’ failure to build more interconnectors to a homeowner who doesn’t buy flood insurance and then demands a bailout.
“Poland hasn’t done anything in 15 years, not one pipeline,” Szczesniak said. “There are several [interconnector] projects ready, but some politicians say they don’t want it because it would be Russian gas [flowing through them].
“It would link us to the European Union system and the German system, which is an energy hub,” Szczesniak said. He noted that there is no way of knowing if gas from a new German interconnector would be more expensive, as unpredictable market mechanisms would come into play.
Ironically, the new, larger contract with Gazprom might allay the over-supply problem. “As the situation stabilizes, gas consumption will grow,” Szczesniak said. Entrepreneurs thinking about kicking off projects that need natural gas, such as the planned power plants, may be more likely to go ahead with them now. “But as use grows, it becomes even more important to have more than one supplier,” Szczesniak added.
Burzynski, on the other hand, emphasized there was no point in getting emotional and complaining about dependence on Russia. “The relationship with Russia is symbiotic,” he said.
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Post by Bonobo on Nov 27, 2009 21:52:53 GMT 1
Group says to name disputed Merkel ally to museum
Nov 16, 2009
BERLIN, Nov 16 (Reuters) - A German lobby group plans to nominate controversial conservative Erika Steinbach to head a new World War Two museum, in a move likely to heighten tensions in Chancellor Angela Merkel's cabinet and alienate Poland.
The vice president of the German League of Expellees told the Augsburger Allgemeine newspaper that the group would name Steinbach, a member of Merkel's Christian Democrats (CDU), as its nominee to the board of the museum.
"On Tuesday, we will make use of our right to propose a candidate and naturally we will select Frau Steinbach," Christian Knauer told the paper.
Steinbach is head of the League and the driving force behind the planned "Centre for Expulsions", a museum which will depict the plight of Germans and other groups forced out of eastern Europe after the war.
She has been a hated figure in Poland ever since she voted against recognising Germany's current border with Poland in a symbolic parliamentary vote in 1990.
The Polish government long opposed the museum, which it saw as an attempt to portray Germans as victims of a war they started. Last year it agreed not to stand in the way of the project, but made clear it would not accept a board seat for Steinbach.
Merkel's cabinet, which meets north of Berlin on Tuesday for a two-day session to resolve divisive policy issues, must approve the nomination but is deeply divided.
Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle, a member of the Free Democrats (FDP), vowed at the weekend to veto Steinbach's appointment if the League nominated her, saying the move risked damaging Berlin's relations with Warsaw.
However, Steinbach is supported by some CDU officials and by the other party in Merkel's coalition, the Bavarian Christian Social Union (CSU), who have said that a veto by Westerwelle would seriously damage ties in the new German government.
Merkel has avoided taking sides on the issue, concerned about hurting ties with Poland but also fearful of a backlash from members of her own party.
Poland's borders were shifted west by international treaty after the war and German communities were forced to leave their homes in Poland, Hungary and the former Czechoslovakia.
Earlier this year, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk personally lobbied Merkel to drop Steinbach, saying a role for her on the museum's board would be painful for Poland.
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German expellees leader raises pressure on Merkel
FRANKFURT, Nov 17 (Reuters) - German conservative politician Erika Steinbach on Tuesday reaffirmed her desire to head a new World War Two museum, raising the pressure on Chancellor Angela Merkel to settle a major dispute within her coalition.
Steinbach, head of the League of Expellees and a member of Merkel's Christian Democrats (CDU), has been a driving force behind the museum, which will depict the plight of Germans and other groups forced out of eastern Europe after the war.
But Steinbach is deeply unpopular in Poland for forcefully pushing the interests of expellees and has created divisions in Merkel's government, which took power only last month.
Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle of the Free Democrats (FDP) is opposed to giving her a seat on the board of the museum because it could damage relations with Warsaw and has vowed to veto her appointment, which the cabinet must approve.
But Steinbach has the backing of CDU members and the Bavarian Christian Social Union (CSU), whose leader Horst Seehofer has warned Westerwelle to back down or risk seriously harming relations within the coalition.
On Tuesday, the League backed Steinbach for the job and she called a news conference in Frankfurt, pressing the government to support her too.
"The coalition needs to sit down and decide what it wants," Steinbach said.
The issue is shaping up as Merkel's first real test as head of the new centre-right government.
Merkel's cabinet began a two-day meeting north of Berlin on Tuesday to resolve divisive policy issues and the museum nomination now threatens to overshadow the gathering.
The German chancellor has avoided taking sides on the issue, concerned about hurting ties with Poland but also fearful of a backlash from members of her own party.
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Merkel puts off decision that would anger Poland
BERLIN, Nov 18 (Reuters) - German Chancellor Angela Merkel put off a decision on Wednesday to back a party member for a seat on the board of a World War Two museum, thereby avoiding making an endorsement that would have angered Poland.
Merkel told a news conference that the issue of endorsing Erika Steinbach, 66, a member of Merkel's Christian Democrats, for a seat on the board of a museum which chronicles German suffering at the war's end had not come up at cabinet talks.
"The subject did not play a role in Meseberg, because a decision can only be made once the League of Expellees has made a nomination," Merkel told a news conference in Meseberg, north of Berlin, when asked about Steinbach after the talks.
"We need to wait for that decision."
The League of Expellees, the body behind the museum which Steinbach heads, has said it wants her to take the seat on its board.
Responding to Merkel's announcement, a spokeswoman for the League said they would continue to wait for Berlin to decide.
Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle has threatened to veto Steinbach's appointment to avoid angering Poland.
Steinbach, born in German-occupied Poland where her father served in the Luftwaffe, argues Germany has dishonoured the memory of the expellees too long, and once tried to make Polish membership of the European Union conditional on paying compensation for them.
Hans Vorlaender, a political scientist at the University of Dresden, said Merkel had two choices: to convince Steinbach to give up the seat or to ensure it remains empty.
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Post by valpomike on Nov 28, 2009 3:09:07 GMT 1
Looks like a load of bunk to me, what do you think?
Mike
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Post by valpomike on Nov 28, 2009 3:12:20 GMT 1
It must be what the Russians eat, that give them so much gas.
Just a joke, like Russia and Germany are.
Mike
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Post by Bonobo on Jan 28, 2010 20:25:19 GMT 1
Poland and Russia conclude gas talks - confirmed
28.01.2010 14:52
UPDATE - Polish Radio’s news agency IAR learnt that Poland and Russia have finally signed a gas agreement, easing fears that Moscow would turn off the taps during the deep freeze.
The deal was confirmed by both sides Thursday morning and ensures supply of up to 10.2 billion cubic metres annually till 2037, PGNiG said in a statement, Thursday.
"Next week the deal should receive all the corporate approvals. Then it's up to the government to approve it," PGNiG, spokesman Miroslaw Dobrut told Reuters.
The deal requires the approval of government’s in Moscow and Warsaw.
Earlier this week it was reported that Poland’s gas monopoly PGNiG starting cutting supply to industrial customers, such as oil refiner PKN Orlen and fertilizer maker Zaklady Chemiczne. PGNiG had said earlier in the week that their stores had been put under pressure by the unusually cold snap Poland is currently in.
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Post by valpomike on Jan 28, 2010 23:42:10 GMT 1
Some times, eating to much good Polish food, will give you free gas.
Mike
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Post by Bonobo on Jan 30, 2010 1:14:46 GMT 1
Poland and Russia conclude gas talks - confirmed
28.01.2010 14:52
UPDATE - Polish Radio’s news agency IAR learnt that Poland and Russia have finally signed a gas agreement, easing fears that Moscow would turn off the taps during the deep freeze.
The deal was confirmed by both sides Thursday morning and ensures supply of up to 10.2 billion cubic metres annually till 2037, PGNiG said in a statement, Thursday.
"Next week the deal should receive all the corporate approvals. Then it's up to the government to approve it," PGNiG, spokesman Miroslaw Dobrut told Reuters.
The deal requires the approval of government’s in Moscow and Warsaw.
Earlier this week it was reported that Poland’s gas monopoly PGNiG starting cutting supply to industrial customers, such as oil refiner PKN Orlen and fertilizer maker Zaklady Chemiczne. PGNiG had said earlier in the week that their stores had been put under pressure by the unusually cold snap Poland is currently in. The deal with Russians till 2037 is critisized by many here. What? So long? But Poland has her own gas, estimated to suffice for 100 years!!The problem is that we have shale and tight gas but only Americans have technology to get it from under the surface. www.tvn24.pl/-1,1640660,0,1,oto-lupek-_-nasza-gazowa-nadzieja,wiadomosc.html Currently American companies, Exxon Mobil, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, Marathon Oil Corp which got licenses are looking for shale gas in Poland. Red means shale gas, grey - traditional.  www.tvn24.pl/-1,1640660,0,1,oto-lupek-_-nasza-gazowa-nadzieja,wiadomosc.html |
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Post by valpomike on Jan 30, 2010 5:22:58 GMT 1
It would be better for Poland, if they could deal with the USA, and not Russia. But this is just me, what do the rest of you think?
Mike
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Post by Bonobo on Feb 1, 2010 15:02:34 GMT 1
It would be better for Poland, if they could deal with the USA, and not Russia. But this is just me, what do the rest of you think? Mike We deal with US in other areas. We sell Americans land, and they send us their soldiers and rockets. As for gas, we can`t deal unitl someone puts gas pipes all the way from US to Poland. |
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Post by valpomike on Feb 1, 2010 16:49:46 GMT 1
We all live for the day, when Poland will not need Russia, or any place for there needs, and this day will come, soon, I hope.
We did not send rockets, our leader, changed his mind, if he has one.
We love your ham!
Mike
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Post by Bonobo on Nov 15, 2010 20:36:31 GMT 1
A New Gas Deal
Aleksandra Lefek | 4th November 2010
Paweł Kowal on the new gas agreement with Russia
Over the past weeks, both Poland and Russia have been striving to come to an agreement over the transport of natural gas between the countries, and the results may finally be settled this weekend. This afternoon, the European Commission announced that it would assess the new Polish-Russian gas deal within 48 hours, to see if it is compatible with European Union law.
On 17 October, following many hours of talks in Moscow, Poland and Russia finally reached an agreement on a draft contract for the delivery of gas to Poland and increased the agreed upon amounts to two billion cubic metres annually.
According to the deal, Gazprom will supply PGNiG (Polish Petroleum and Gas Mining), the largest Polish oil and gas exploration and production company, until 2022 (previously signed until 2037) for domestic use, and until 2019 for transit to other European consumers.
For it to go into effect, the agreement had to be signed by the Polish and Russian governments. In addition, the legally binding agreement had to be annexed by PGNiG and a subsidiary of Gazprom, Gazprom Export. Finally, the agreement has to receive the blessing of the European Commission.
“The agreement should be signed before Russian President Dmitry Medvedev's visit to Poland in December,” Polish Economic Minister Waldemar Pawlak had promised last Wednesday.
On 18 October, Mr. Paweł Kowal, a member of the European Parliament (PiS), when asked why it is necessary for Poland to sign a new gad deal with Russia, said: “Yesterday, an arrangement from Moscow showed that it is possible to sign a contract until 2022, simultaneously slightly increasing the volume of the natural gas delivered to Poland. Binding oneself by an agreement to 2037 would be economically unjustified for Poland, particularly in the situation of the completion of the Gozoportu structure in Świnoujście in 2014, and future gas mining potential.”
He also said that paradoxically the European Commission, rather than the Polish government, supported Poland’s raison d'être.
Poland reached a preliminary agreement with Russian gas monopoly Gazprom last year in January, but the contract has not been signed due to worries that it is incompatible with European Union regulations.
Mr. Kowal stated that leaving the contract valid until 2022 will allow Poland to decide at the time whether the geological predictions indicating a high potential for “blue fuel” in Poland will be confirmed.
Earlier during the negotiation of the Polish-Russian gas agreement, Mirosław Maliszewski, a member of Parliament (Polish Peasant Party) accused PiS of using this agreement as part of their political arguments during a press conference at the Sejm.
To the question as to why PiS is opposed to this agreement, and the solutions acceptable to PiS, Kowal answered, “[PiS] had consistently opposed the Polish-Russian gas agreement in its previous shape from the beginning.
“First of all, the reason was that the period of the contract was too long, but also that is was not in line with EU law.” He explained that “the limited access of third parties to the Yamal gas pipeline was an open infringement of European Union regulations”. Finally, he also added that “arrangements concerning fees for the transit of the raw materials through Polish territory as well as the issue of discontinuing overdue transit payments by the Polish side from the Russian side raised doubts”.
Mr. Kowal said that his party mainly opposed the legal arrangements contained in the contract, but overall agreed that it is necessary for Poland to regulate the issue of gas supplies immediately. This would provide corporations with economic safety, but most importantly, gas in polish houses.
According to the European Union regulation, the owner and manager of the transit pipeline cannot belong to the same company. It is possible that Russia was trying to create a Polish precedent to contravene the EU’s anti-monopoly legislation and hoped to protect Gazprom’s interests in Europe.
When asked if Russia has chosen Poland as a ground for testing European common energy policy, Mr. Kowal said that he doesn’t think that Poland is any training ground for testing by Russia. He mentioned that Poland has a good transit geographical position and fairly large internal mining industry.
Over 70 percent of Polish energy needs to consist of imports, 95 percent of which must be provided by Russia and countries belonging to the Commonwealth of Independent States. The other 30 percent comes from domestic production, coal in particular.
“Despite everything, Poland is less susceptible to pressures than Finland, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, which import their entire gas supplies from Russia,” Kowal added.
“Poland is in a very good position for negotiation, since Russia cannot reduce supplies of gas to Poland overnight and [thereby] threaten the energy security of its chief European trading partner, Germany.”
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Post by Bonobo on Jun 17, 2016 23:53:29 GMT 1
(In)Famous Qatar gas has arrived at last.
12 November 2009
Earlier this year, PGNiG agreed with Qatargas for the Qatari company to start shipping liquefied gas to Poland in 2014. Government and PGNiG officials hailed the deal as a decisive step toward energy diversification, but detractors noted the gas was more expensive than Russian gas.
First LNG commercial shipment docks at Polish terminal
17.06.2016 14:51
The first commercial shipment of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) has docked at the Świnoujście terminal in north-western Poland.
The ship, operated by Qatargas, arrived at the Świnoujście in Poland on Friday, the operator of the terminal, Gaz-System said in a statement.
The vessel “will deliver 210,000 cubic metres of liquefied natural gas”, the statement read.
The gas will be pumped from the ship to the tanks located in the onshore part of the terminal on Saturday.
The delivery is in line with expectations set in December 2015, when the government announced the terminal could start receiving a shipment of fuel a month from the second half of this year.
The shipments will be made under a deal between Polish gas monopoly PGNiG and Qatargas, the state-controlled gas distributor of Qatar, explained Jan Chadam, the CEO of Poland’s Gaz-System, which operates the gas terminal. (rg) |
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