MOSCOW, March 6 (Reuters) - Russia's Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said on Friday that he had discussed with domestic energy companies the possibility of redirecting Russian supplies of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Europe to other markets, Interfax news agency and Izvestia newspaper reported.
Earlier this week Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Russia could halt gas supplies to Europe right now amid a spike in energy prices triggered by the Iran crisis, pre-empting EU plans to stop Russian LNG imports by end-2026 and pipeline gas by September 30, 2027
Novak said that Russian companies were considering opportunities to divert shipments to Asia-Pacific markets. Negotiations are already under way, he said, and in the near future supplies will be redirected from the European market to what he described as friendly countries.
"Our companies are considering opportunities, without waiting for further restrictions from Europe, to conclude new long-term contracts with our partners and redirect some of the gas from Europe to other countries, including India, Thailand, the Philippines and the People's Republic of China", Novak said.
(Reporting by Marina Bobrova Writing by Maxim RodionovEditing by Mark Trevelyan)
