The Prime Minister of Poland Mateusz Morawiecki said about the new contract that it not only increases energy independence, but also makes more competitive the Polish gas sector. “Our predecessors wanted to sign the contract with “Gazprom”, which would have been a gas irons,” said Morawiecki, who headed the Polish government in December 2017.
He recalled that the contract with “Gazprom” on deliveries of 10.2 billion cubic meters of gas annually “fortunately” expires in 2022.
He stressed that gas supplies from the US will cost 20% cheaper than shipping from the East, said the Polish edition Forsal. “At 20-something percent cheaper. Almost 30% cheaper than the Russian gas”, – said, Wozniak. “I understand that you’re surprised, but we do business”, he added (quoted by RIA news).
PGNiG announced that before the end of the year plans to sign another contract for the supply of LNG on the same terms as Venture Global LNG.
“Gazprom” this year’s increased gas supplies to Poland by almost 10% amid the rhetoric against Russian gas, told TASS. The official representative of “Gazprom” Sergei Kupriyanov said the situation of Poland with the United States, it is “their right”. He noted that Russian gas is absolutely competitive. “Deliveries to Poland, amid all the rhetoric against Russian gas, have increased this year by almost 10%,” – said Kupriyanov (quoted by TASS).
Poland and gas from Russia
The annual need of Poland to the gas amount to 15 billion cubic meters of About 5 billion cubic meters of gas extracted in the country. The rest of the volume Warsaw is forced to import mainly due to the Russian “Gazprom”.
The contract on gas deliveries to Poland was signed in 1996. In 2010, Poland said with Gazprom long-term contract on gas supplies. It was about the gas supply in the period from 2012 to 2022 11.0 billion cubic meters of gas according to Russian standards. This meant that the minimum selection of approximately 9.4 billion cubic meters, or 0.4 billion cubic meters higher than export volume in 2009.
In 2012 Poland managed to reduce the price of Russian gas supplied under this contract is 10%. However, in 2015, PGNiG filed a lawsuit in the Stockholm arbitration, demanding that the new lower gas prices. Warsaw insists that the gas price in the contract is excessive and not consistent with the state of the market.
In July 2018, it became known that Poland is estimated at $400 million and their losses during seven years on the transit of Russian natural gas due to unfavorable agreement with Gazprom concluded 2010 without a thorough study of the Polish side. “There has been a loss of profits from transit in 2010-2017 years, a total of about 1.5 billion zlotys (about $400 million)”, – said the representative of the government of the country on issues of strategic energy infrastructure Piotr Naimski.
He noted that the agreements reached with Gazprom, the agreements resulted in the loss of Warsaw control over the technical operator of the Polish section of the pipeline “Yamal – Europe” company “EuroPolGaz”. There was a “strengthening of dependence on Russia”, said Polish official.
2 June 2018 the Supreme chamber of control of Poland (NIK) has published on its website a report with the results of the verification of gas contracts with Russia’s Gazprom concluded in 2009-2010. “The negotiations of the Polish government with the Russian authorities in 2009-2010 on the supply of natural gas was conducted by the Polish side without careful preparation”, – stated in the document. It acknowledges that the Polish authorities failed in 2006-2011 to ensure the country continuity of gas supply, but the economic effect was worse than expected.
This happened as a result of violations that the inspection found that the actions Waldemar Pawlak, who held at that time a post of the Minister of economy of Poland and the biggest Polish energy company PGNiG. “As economy Minister and PGNiG is not fully used its bargaining position, not taking attempts to obtain in exchange for favorable to the Russian side of the situation similar benefits for Poland,” – said in the report.
In the Supreme chamber of control of Poland called “infidels” action Pawlak in the field of harmonization of international gas contracts with “Gazprom”. “The activities of the Minister of economy on negotiations with Russia in 2009-2010, was conducted largely without the support of approved instructions”, – stated in the report of the Polish Supervisory authority.
