On November 17, Russian gas flows to Austria were suspended for the second consecutive day due to price disputes, but other buyers in Europe stepped in to buy up the unsold amount of gas - Reuters reported.
Before the Ukraine conflict, Russia was Europe's largest gas supplier. However, Moscow has lost most of its buyers on the continent as the EU tries to reduce its dependence on Russian energy.
However, Russian gas is still being sold in significant volumes to Slovakia and Hungary, as well as to the Czech Republic - a country without direct contracts. Smaller volumes were sold to Italy and Serbia.
On November 16, Russian oil and gas giant Gazprom stopped supplying OMV after the Austrian company threatened to seize some of Gazprom's gas in compensation for an arbitration case it had won.
Gazprom confirmed that gas flows to Austria were still suspended on November 17, but total daily supplies to Europe via Ukraine - the main transit route for Russian gas to the EU - remained at 42.4 million cubic meters per day, equivalent to normal volumes.
Austria received 17 billion cubic metres per day before the cuts, and that volume is finding new buyers in Europe.
Slovakia's state-owned SPP said it is still receiving gas from Russia and said other companies are competing to buy more because Russian gas in Europe still has "great benefits".
According to a source familiar with the matter, Russian gas is still cheaper than many other sources, so the volume of Austrian gas has been quickly resold and the parties are competing to buy.
The source declined to name the companies that bought them, while Austria said it had ample gas reserves to cover the shortage and could import from Germany and Italy if needed.
The European gas market is sensitive to geopolitical developments and supply issues, especially as the transit of Russian gas through Ukraine is expected to end by the end of this year.
colder temperatures in Europe have also boosted heating demand, leading to gas being withdrawn from EU reserves earlier than last year.
Dutch TTF futures closed at 45.72 euros per megawatt hour on November 16, the highest in nearly a year.
At its peak, Russia supplied 35% of Europe's gas, but since the Ukraine conflict began in 2022, Gazprom has lost market share to Norway, the US and Qatar.
Gazprom's remaining gas to Europe is not expected to continue for long, as the Soviet-era pipeline through Ukraine will close at the end of this year as Kiev does not want to extend the transit agreement.
The Yamal-European pipeline through Belarus has been closed following a dispute, while Russia has blamed the US and UK for explosions under the Baltic Sea that damaged the Nord Stream gas pipeline.
Washington and London denied the allegations. The Wall Street Journal reported that Ukrainian officials were behind the Nord Stream attack, but Kiev also denied it.
If Ukraine closes the gas transit route, a significant supply of Russian gas will mainly go to Slovakia and Hungary via the TurkStream pipeline running mainly through Turkey.
