Gazprom to purchase 4 bln cubic m of gas from Uzbekistan in 2016

​In December 2015 Gazprom and Uzbekneftegas signed a contract for the purchase of 4 bln cubic m of Uzbek gas in 2016.

In early January Gazprom’s head, A. Miller, said that the company plans to increase gas purchase from Uzbekistan in 2016. The previous contract for gas purchase from Uzbekistan and the agreement on gas pumping via the country for 2013-2015 were signed by Gazprom in December 2012.

The contract with Uzbekneftegas was signed on the background of the escalation of relationships between Gazprom and Turkmengas. The companies argued about the price of Turkmen gas for the Russian company. In particular, in mid 2015 Ashkhabad accused Gazprom of not paying its debts before Turkmengas for the shipped gas volumes from the beginning of 2015.

In June 2015 Gazprom filed a claim to the Stockholm Arbitration Court against Turkmengas asking to reconsider the gas price.

In mid January Turkmengas reported that Gazprom from January 1st preliminarily broke the contract. Gazprom named the reason of cancellation of the contract to be the violations of the contract by Turkmengas.