The European Union gets 42% of its gas imports from Russia, mostly via pipelines across Ukraine. The meeting of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF), which is being held in Moscow, comes amid fears of a new contract dispute between Russian gas giant Gazprom and Ukraine that could disrupt gas supplies to Europe this winter.
The BBC cited observers as saying the GECF may develop into an Opec-style producers’ cartel. Many in Europe worry that such an organisation could hold a monopoly on world supply and set prices to suit its own needs.
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