GEORGIA’S PIPELINE REPAIR DELAY MAY LEAVE ARMENIA WITHOUT GAS
RIA Novosti, Russia
Dec 19 2006
MOSCOW, December 19 (RIA Novosti) – Armenia’s underground gas storage
facilities may be empty this winter if Georgia fails to restore
its pipeline pumping Russian gas on time, an official spokesman for
Russian energy giant Gazprom said Tuesday.
"If repair work continues for a long time, Armenia may have no
more gas in its underground storage facilities this winter," Sergei
Kupriyanov said.
The Georgian Gas Transportation Company reported Monday that an
avalanche damaged the pipeline pumping Russian gas to Georgia and
Armenia in the early hours of December 18.
A reserve branch pumping 1.2 million cu m of gas per day is currently
being used to ensure supplies to Armenia, which in the past has
received around 10 million cu m per day in winter.
Kupriyanov said the Georgian Gas Transportation Company had promised
to repair the pipeline Monday but later said it will take several days.
He said Russia and Armenia, which has not received the required
volumes of Russian gas for two days and is using gas from its storage
facilities, expects Georgia "to take all the necessary measures to
restore [the pipeline] as soon as possible."