Russian gas supplies to Turkey declined by 35.3 percent to 15.51 billion cubic meters (bcm) last year due to a downturn in the Turkish economy, the Kremlin-controlled gas giant Gazprom said on Friday, according to Reuters.
Turkey was Gazprom’s third-largest gas consumer among European countries last year after Germany (53.5 bcm) and Italy (22.1 bcm).
The country’s economy has been struggling despite a moderate recovery after a currency crisis in the summer of 2018, when the national currency lost some 30 percent of its value against the US dollar.
A recent report from Deutsche Welle Turkish service indicated that Turkey has been paying Russia $250 to $280 per thousand cubic meter, while in Europe the prices were around $110-$120.