Gas shipments through Ukraine may soon be interrupted, warns ex-economy minister. Russia is to blame, he adds

At a press conference on Wednesday (7 August) of the non-parliamentary party Democrats, former Economy Minister Karel Hirman pointed this out.

Fighting is currently taking place over the town of Sudzha, near which there is a transfer point for the transport of gas from Russia to Ukraine.

It could end up like with Sochran

"Gas transit can stop at any time as a result of the fighting," Hirman said, adding that transit was similarly halted as recently as 2022 through another transfer point, Sochranovka, and so far the entire route is out of service.

At that time, natural gas transportation was stopped by Ukraine, citing the activities of Russian occupation forces in the Donbas, which includes Sochranovka, as the reason.

Hirman pointed out that neither the Ministry of Economy nor the state-owned Slovak Gas Industry (SPP) have announced how gas supplies will be secured in 2025.

Could Slovakia use oil from the Baltics if necessary? More in the report ↓:

Preparedness for any situation

SPP said that it has been preparing for the risk of a Russian gas supply stoppage for several years.

"In addition, we are addressing other risks that could arise in a timely manner. That is why we have prepared for this situation by purchasing transport capacity from Germany to Slovakia in time," said SPP spokesman Ondrej Šebesta.

"In addition, we are able to secure transport capacity from Hungary, Austria or, thanks to the good work of our colleagues in our subsidiary Eustream, also from Poland to Slovakia," he added. According to the spokesman, SPP is able to guarantee gas supplies to its customers in any situation.