Price hike in the pipeline

Under the company's current contract with Poland, Gazprom can negotiate for higher gas prices, and its vice president, Alexandre Medvedev, says it intends to do so.

Medvedev was quick to point out that the move was not politically motivated. Relations between Russia and Poland have been tempestuous in recent months, with numerous political and trade disputes that last year resulted in Russia banning Polish meat and agricultural exports to Russia.

Poland wants to wean itself off its dependence on Russian fuel and energy supplies, and last month it announced that it had begun gas trade talks with Nordic and Central Asian countries. Russian gas also hit the headlines in recent months, when a dispute between Russia and Ukraine affected gas supplies around Europe.

Price negotiations between Gazprom and Polish firm PGNiG are thought to have already got underway, but changes in the management of PGNiG have put the discussions temporarily on hold. (Reuters)