Moscow’s move comes a day after the Warsaw government delivered its first Leopard tanks to Ukraine.
Russia has halted oil supplies to Poland via the Druzhba pipeline, says Polish refiner PKN Orlen’s chief executive, adding that the company will explore alternative sources to fill the gap.
The halt to deliveries via the pipeline – exempt from EU sanctions imposed on Russia following its all-out invasion of Ukraine – came a day after Poland delivered its first Leopard tanks to Ukraine.
“We effectively secure the supply. Russia has stopped deliveries to Poland, for which we are prepared. Only 10 percent of crude oil comes from Russia and we will replace it with oil from other sources,” PKN Orlen chief executive Daniel Obajtek wrote on Twitter.
The company said it can supply its refineries entirely by sea and the halt to pipeline deliveries will not affect deliveries of gasoline and diesel to its customers.
Since February, after a contract with Russian company Rosneft expired, Orlen has been sourcing oil under a deal with Russian oil and gas company Tatneft.
Tatneft and Russian oil pipeline monopoly Transneft did not immediately comment on the issue.
The halt came after US President Joe Biden visited Warsaw and Kiev this week to show his support for Ukraine, a year after the invasion.
The European Union agreed on a tenth package of sanctions against Russia on Friday.
tank delivered
Poland has already delivered four Leopard tanks to Ukraine and is ready to deliver faster, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Friday.
“Poland and Europe stand by your side. We will definitely not leave you, we will support Ukraine until it fully defeats Russia,” Morawiecki said during a visit to Kiev alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
After the invasion of Ukraine and before the EU imposed an embargo on sea supplies from Russia, Orlen stopped buying Russian oil and fuel across the sea.
The company’s supply portfolio now includes oil from West Africa, the Mediterranean, the Gulf and the Gulf of Mexico. From 2022 there is also a supply contract with Saudi Aramco.
Deliveries reach Poland by sea via Naftoport, an oil terminal in Gdansk on the Baltic Sea. It can hold 36 million tons of oil annually, which is more than Polish refineries can process. It is partly used to supply oil to refineries in East Germany connected to Druzhba.