Although Russia's Gazprom has sent a letter to Poland's gas monopoly Polish Oil and Gas Company (PGNiG) apologizing for cutting off the nation's gas supplies last week, PGNiG is looking at ways to secure imports of gas from the West in case supplies from the East are ever interrupted again.

In its letter, Gazprom said that it is ready to discuss compensation to Poland for the break in supplies, and assures that this situation shall never occur again. Meanwhile, PGNiG proposes that in case it does, the direction of the gas flow in the Yamal pipeline be reversed, so that rather than sending Russian gas to Germany, Poland would receive Western gas through the same pipeline. However, such a solution is technologically difficult and would require approval from Gazprom's German subsidiaries, Wingas and VNG.

(WBJ 1.iii.04)