Many countries buy gas with rubles, Russia launches a new strategy

Many countries pay for Russian gas in rubles

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said many countries agree to pay in ruble for Russian and Moscow gas pending decisions from other importers.

Some countries that buy Russian natural gas have agreed to switch to ruble payments, RT quoted Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak as saying on April 15.

“We are waiting for the decision to switch to rubles from other importers,” Novak added, without disclosing the identities of customers who switched payment methods.

The Deputy Prime Minister noted that EU countries are unlikely to be able to completely replace Russian energy in the next 5-10 years. It is impossible to talk about ensuring Europe’s energy security without Russian energy, he said.

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said the country is ready to pay for Russian gas according to the planned schedule. Mr Szijjarto believes this does not violate EU sanctions.

Armenian Economy Minister Vahan Kerobyan told Russian media outlet RBC that Yerevan had made some natural gas payments in rubles.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia is planning to increase the use of the ruble in energy exports, but no deadline has been set for the payment transition.

“The president has laid out a step-by-step and methodical approach to expanding the use of the national currency,” Peskov told reporters on April 15.

According to Peskov, it is too early to talk about the deadline and details regarding the extension of the measure.

Last month, President Putin signed a decree requiring the introduction of a new payment procedure for Russian gas starting April 1, for buyers from unfriendly countries who have imposed Russia sanctions and freeze gold reserves and Moscow’s foreign exchange.

Russia has instructed buyers in designated “unfriendly” countries to open two accounts at Russia’s Gazprombank, one in Euros and one in rubles. The gas payment will be transferred to the Euro account, after which the bank will convert it into rubles.

Key tasks for the Russian oil and gas industry

Russian President Vladimir Putin said some Western countries are not paying Russia on time. “Banks from most unfriendly countries are delaying payments,” the head of state said.

According to Putin, despite calls to cut energy supplies, Western countries are acknowledging that they cannot do without Russian energy. As a result, they are “driving up prices and destabilizing the market,” Putin said, warning that Moscow would redirect its energy east.

According to President Putin, Western efforts to choke off energy supplies will certainly affect the entire global economy, adding that currently there is no reasonable alternative to gas. Russian burning in Europe.

“Initially, serious experts and analysts warned and publicized that, in fact, accelerating the green transition would come with huge costs. This is how things work out in practice. And now there is a great reason to cover up their miscalculations and blame everything on Russia,” Putin said.

President Putin emphasized that Russia has made it a task to switch to using the national currency in payments for energy and gradually move away from it. USD and the euro.

“In general, we plan to sharply increase the proportion of payments in national currencies in foreign trade. And the important task here is to prepare our foreign exchange market for such a transition, so that any foreign currency can be freely converted to the Russian ruble in the required amount.” – said leader Putin.

President Putin also set three key tasks in the near future for the Russian oil and gas industry. First of all, it is necessary to ensure the power supply energy sustainable for the domestic market and increase the supply for Russian consumers. Second, exports need to diversify and reorient to fast-growing markets in the South and East. Third, Mr. Putin ordered the development of deep oil and gas production.