Russia May Resume Gas Supply to Transnistria via TurkStream Pipeline
Russia is reportedly preparing to resume gas deliveries to Transnistria through the TurkStream pipeline, according to data from the RBP trading platform. On January 20, the Cypriot company Ozbor Enterprises secured a reservation for pipeline capacity of 3.1 million cubic meters of gas per day for a month, as reported by Kommersant. This amount matches the gas requirements of the unrecognized republic, which has been grappling with an ongoing energy crisis. Deliveries are anticipated to commence on February 1.
Sources cited by the Russian business publication noted that several options for gas supply to Transnistria had been explored previously. However, the current priority appears to be gas transit via Turkey. This route is estimated to cost Russia $160 million, according to the publication’s sources.
From Turkey, the gas is expected to flow through the Trans-Balkan pipeline, which is currently operating in reverse mode. However, monthly auction reservations on January 20 did not include key sections of the pipeline connected to Moldova. Specifically, the auction did not reserve capacity at entry points along the borders of Bulgaria and Romania, Romania and Ukraine (Isacha-Orlovka), or Romania and Moldova (Iași-Chișinău pipeline).
Monthly reservations for pipeline capacity are held every third Monday, after which daily reservations can be secured at a higher cost.
The Romanian platform Profit.Ro has reported that Ozbor Enterprises is active in the gas import and export market. It received membership at CEEGEX, the operator of Hungary’s gas market, in April 2024. The company’s gas trading operations are managed by Miroslav Stoyanovich, a former senior gas trader for Gazprom (2017–2022) and ex-gas supply manager for WIEE, a trader that was indirectly owned by Gazprom through its German division.
Transnistria has faced severe energy shortages since Russian gas transit through Ukraine to the region was halted on January 1. Residents have been left without heating and hot water, frequent power outages have disrupted daily life, and nearly all industrial operations in the region have come to a standstill. Previously, Gazprom supplied the breakaway region with around 5.7 million cubic meters of gas per day, equivalent to 2 billion cubic meters annually.
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