Ukraine war: Russia slaps sanctions on Gazprom units in Europe and US, part owner of pipeline
- Moscow imposed sanctions on more than 30 EU, US and Singaporean energy companies in retaliatory move
- Western sanctions against Moscow have ranged from freezing assets to export bans on strategic products like semiconductors
Moscow has imposed sanctions on the owner of the Polish part of the Yamal pipeline that carries Russian gas to Europe, as well as the former German unit of the Russian gas producer Gazprom, whose subsidiaries service Europe’s gas consumption.
The entities on a list of affected firms on a Russian government website on Wednesday were largely based in countries that have imposed sanctions on Russia in response to its invasion of Ukraine, most of them members of the European Union.
The implications for gas supplies to Europe, which buys more than a third of its gas from Russia, were not immediately clear. Eastbound gas flows continued via the Yamal-Europe pipeline from Germany to Poland, data from the Gascade pipeline operator showed.
Energy prices rose on Wednesday as the European Union weighs a possible embargo on Russian crude, while trading firms are set to cut activity with Russia when tighter EU rules on Russian oil sales come into effect on May 15.
Russian President Vladimir Putin decreed on May 3 that no Russian entity would be allowed to make deals with those on the sanctions list, or even fulfil its obligations under existing deals.
The decree explicitly forbids the export of products and raw materials to people and entities on the list.