European natural gas prices have risen after Russian dictator Vladimir Putin questioned the likelihood of a deal to preserve supplies to Europe through Ukraine, Bloomberg writes, UNN reports .
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Gas futures jumped by 5% on Friday, the highest in a week.
Dutch futures, which are the benchmark for European gas, rose by 2.30% to 46.78 euros per megawatt-hour at 9:20 am in Amsterdam.
On Thursday, Putin said it was impossible to sign a new transit contract before the end of the year, when the current agreement expires.
Central European countries that still buy Russian gas have proposed alternative solutions to keep the fuel flowing through Ukraine, but President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has rejected any arrangement that would funnel money into the Russian budget while the war continues.
Ukraine will not continue transit of Russian gas - Zelenskyy19.12.24, 16:46 • [views_17523]
Putin acknowledged that the various proposals on the table - allowing Hungary, Slovakia, Turkey or Azerbaijan to take control of gas supplied through Ukraine - are difficult to implement because Gazprom has long-term contracts that are difficult to change.
The flows at risk represent about 5% of European demand. While this is a small slice of the market, the loss of these volumes would force countries to rely more heavily on pipeline gas from Norway or LNG from the United States.
Traders in Europe are closely monitoring the state of gas storage facilities in the region, which are currently below 75%.
Putin also said that another obstacle to the agreement is the arbitration proceedings of Naftogaz of Ukraine against Gazprom. According to him, in order to reach an agreement on transit, the lawsuit should be withdrawn from the court.