VIENNA, Jan. 7 (Xinhua) -- Russian gas flows to Austria stopped completely Wednesday amid the fallout of Moscow's price row with Ukraine.
Austria's gas industry is drawing on reserves, domestic production
and other imports to guarantee gas supply to customers, said Austrian oil and
gas company OMV.
Russia cut off supplies to Ukraine on Jan. 1 after the two countries
failed to reach an agreement on gas prices for 2009. Some southern and eastern
European countries including Austria have seen gas flows ebb or stop entirely.
Earlier this week, OMV said it was well prepared for a gas supply
cut, with around 1.75 billion cubic meters of gas reserves, enough to supply
Austrian households and industrial customers for three months during the winter.
If Russian supplies remain halted, measures such as reducing
industrial gas consumption will be considered, OMV said, adding that it was in
touch with Russian gas giant Gazprom and the relevant Austrian authorities for
solutions.
About 51 percent of Austria's gas is imported from Russia, 31 percent
from Norway and other countries, while some 18 percent is produced domestically.