Greece sued Gazprom for "gas is too expensive"

The head of the Greek company DEPA Commercial, Konstantinos Xifaras, announced the start of arbitration proceedings with Gazprom due to the Russian supplier’s refusal to reduce the cost of gas.

The supply contract was concluded according to the “take-or-pay” scheme, however current Spot fuel prices in Europe are significantly lower than those obtained from the terms of the contract with Gazprom. It was not possible to reach an agreement with the supplier to bring the terms of the contract into reality, so the Greek company decided to act through the courts.

“Commercial negotiations are currently ongoing, they have not stopped, but the company has taken the next step – it has applied to arbitration,” Xifaras explained.

Greece remains one of the last major buyers of Russian gas in Europe. The contract with DEPA was signed in January 2022, even before the start of hostilities in Ukraine. At that time, the company called the prices offered very competitive, but over the past two years, Europe has managed to achieve a sharp reduction in gas prices.

One of DEPA's arguments was the prices for another Greek client of Gazprom, who was able to reduce payments. However, the disadvantage of their position was the failure to fulfill the “take or pay” condition in 2022 and 2023.

As the publication notes, DEPA can count on success, including due to the attitude towards Gazprom in Europe in recent years. The Russian company is not under sanctions, but even hiring lawyers to represent its interests will not be easy. Moreover, it has previously lost similar proceedings, and the prospect of losing a major buyer may contribute to the acquiescence of the Russian monopolist.

It was previously reported that at the end of last year, Gazprom's net profit amounted to 696 billion rubles, which is seven percent less than the previous year's result, and gross profit fell by 60%.

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