OMV terminates Gazprom contract: Austria regardless of Russian gas!

OMV terminates Gazprom contract: Austria regardless of Russian gas!

Österreich, Land - The OMV, the Austrian oil and natural gas company, has terminated the long-term gas supply contract with Gazprom with immediate effect. This decision comes after numerous contractual breaches on the part of the Russian company, since Gazprom had stopped delivering gas on November 16, 2024. The contract, which was originally applied until 2040, has been criticized again and again since its signing in 2006, especially because of its long -term obligations. In an official message, OMV boss Alfred Stern emphasized that the company now switches to alternative gas sources from Norway and Austria as well as liquefied gas (LNG) to ensure security of care for its customers, as well as yahoo reported.

surrender of dependency

The sudden delivery stop makes a highlight of the stressed relationship between the OMV and Gazprom. Stern said that the gas storage facility in Austria is currently about 85 percent filled. This means that OMV is able to fulfill the contracts with their customers from newly developed gas sources without relying on gas deliveries from Russia. This dynamic is considered an important step to reduce the risk profile for the GAS business of OMV. The Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer also commented on the developments and made it clear that Austria could not be blackmailed by using Russia as a weapon. He described the termination of the contract as evidence of Austria's determination to the energy independence and found that this termination was not a danger to security of care, as Vol.at reported.

Although the contract was terminated with Gazprom, the uncertainty remains with regard to future gas deliveries via pipeline from Russia. From January 1, 2025, a significant gap could arise, since Ukraine does not plan to extend the existing contract for gas delivery via its territory. The current developments make it clear how seriously the OMV is working on a diversification of its gas sources and is preparing for the geopolitical challenges in the energy sector.