Gazprom cites domestic needs, reduces gas to Europe
Italy has reported receiving some 10 percent less Russian gas after the gas corporation Gazprom reacted to the cold wave hitting Russia by redirecting some gas to meet domestic needs, Radio Liberty reported.
Italy's Ministry of Economic Development noted the decrease on January 31 but European Commission spokeswoman Marlene Holzner said the European Union had enough gas in underground storage to make up for the shortfall in Italy.
Temperatures in the Moscow area have been falling to nearly minus 30 Celsius overnight.
$40 billion profit projected
Meanwhile, in related news, Gazprom has announced that it expects
to record a net profit of $40 billion for 2011.
The figure would represent a growth of profits of some 25 percent over 2010.
The 2011 profits projection was published on February 1 in a Gazprom statement.
The statement confirmed company profits of some $31 billion in the first nine months of last year.
The company also noted slight growth in last year's gas production, with 513.2 billion cubic of meters of gas reported, and said that more of its gas is going to Russian consumers than was previously the case.
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