Reuters
German gas buyers raise the alarm over Russia’s rouble demand
German utilities on Thursday said their country needed an early warning system to tackle gas shortages, a day after Russia ordered the switch of contract payments to roubles, raising the risk of a supply squeeze and even higher prices. President Vladimir Putin’s rouble payment demand, which IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol called a “security threat,” added to market nervousness and called into question Russia’s historic claim it is a reliable gas supplier regardless of geopolitics. Putin announced this demand on Wednesday, in the wake of the United States and European allies teaming up on a series of sanctions aimed at Russia after that nation’s invasion Ukraine last month.
