Russian Gas to Slovakia via Ukraine Remains Robust

Russian natural gas flows to Slovakia via Ukraine on Tuesday stayed well above levels seen since September, data from Slovak pipeline operator Eustream showed.

Nominations for Tuesday were at 99.9 million cubic metres (mcm), down from around 101 mcm over the past three days but more than double levels of around 48 mcm seen in recent months.

Eustream carries gas to Ukraine, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Austria and Hungary, from producers including Russia's Gazprom.

Daily flows via Ukraine and Slovakia have dropped amid conflict in eastern Ukraine and after Slovakia started reverse flow supplies to Ukraine last September.

Ukraine's state gas company Naftogaz said last Thursday that Gazprom had nominated a 58 percent increase in daily transit to the European Union for Friday to 174.3 mcm, a jump that Naftogaz said is above fluctuations set in technical agreements between the two parties.

Naftogaz said at the time that as Russia had not supplied the extra gas 36 hours in advance nor had gas in Ukrainian storage it was not obliged to meet the request but would send the full amount anyway.

Reporting by Robert Muller