Slovakia Importing Russian Gas Via TurkStream as of February

Bratislava, February 6 (TASR) - As of February 1, Slovak gas utility SPP began importing Russian gas to Slovakia via the TurkStream pipeline, with supplies via this route due to double in volume as of April, chair of the SPP board Vojtech Ferencz told journalists on Thursday. Ferencz didn't detail the exact volume of these supplies. He pointed out that SPP still has a valid contract with Russia's Gazprom and that the transit fees are significantly lower than with other suppliers. SPP trade division head Michal Lalik added that, even with this deal in place, Slovakia will probably still need to import gas via other routes as well, as the capacity of the pipeline through Hungary isn't sufficient to cover consumption. In all probability, the other route will be the one from Germany through the Czech Republic, for which SPP has reserved capacity. In January, SPP was covering the needs of its clients mainly by drawing gas from its own reservoirs, which still boast above-average reserves at this point. Ferencz underlined that a priority for SPP is to ensure sufficient supplies of gas for its customers. The problem is the growing prices of gas and higher transit fees for supplies via alternative routes. Gas prices are currently higher than the long-term average, at €53 per megawatt hour (MWh). In December, before Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's decision to halt all gas transit via Ukraine, prices hovered at around €40/MWh. Prices swelled to their current level after the news of a gas shortage in Ukraine and adverse weather forecasts for the following weeks. Also above-average on the stock-exchange market is the price of gas due to be delivered this summer, which is higher than for gas supplied in the winter. This means that traders fear shortages of gas in the summer, when EU countries are obliged to fill up their reservoirs in order to meet a directive of the European Commission on having sufficient gas reserves at the beginning of the next heating season. mf/df