Romania To Increase Russian Gas Imports Tues, Wed

„We talked on the phone with Gazprom officials and we requested a supplementation of imports, in order to ensure the good functioning of the local gas system,” Serban said Tuesday.

The Romanian coordination commission for natural gas supply safety Monday declared a state of emergency due to low temperatures, which means gas supply to certain industrial consumers would be halted and thermal energy producers will use alternative fuels.

The measure was requested by officials with state-owned gas pipeline operator Transgaz (TGN.RO), due to difficulties in supplying gas to consumers, given the cold weather.

The average temperature dropped Monday morning to minus 17.9 degrees Celsius countrywide.

Romania imports about 20% of the natural gas it needs from Russia.