Turkmenistan government said it may cut off shipments of natural gas to Russia and Ukraine
Turkmenistan government said it may cut off shipments of natural gas to Russia and Ukraine unless they agree to new terms.
Earlier this month, the Turkmenian government said it wanted to redraft an agreement with Russia and Ukraine to raise the price to $60 per thousand cubic meters from the current price of $44, and end the barter in which half the value of gas is paid in metal goods and gas refining equipment.
Russia's gas producer Gazprom refused to make concessions and threatened to file suit in an international court.
Alexander Ryazanov, deputy chairman of Gazprom, said, ?We have a long-term contract with Turkmenistan, in which the level of natural gas supplies, the payment formula and the price are fixed until 2006.?
We do not understand how the Turkmen side can terminate this contract unilaterally.
