You're reading: The New York Times: As Europe shivers, Russia and Ukraine point fingers over natural gas supply to the West

MOSCOW — The flow ofnatural gashas fallen off sharply in the main pipelines supplying Europe fromRussia, but this time cold weather — not politics — is to blame.

The dwindling supply is sending a chill through an already very chilly European Union, though it has not yet led to heating shutdowns: countries have tapped reserves or alternative supplies instead.

The shortfalls seemed most extreme in Italy, at the western end of the Russian-supplied pipelines after they pass through a half-dozen or so other cold countries: Italian officials said shipments were falling short by as much as 30 percent. Energy officials in Germany, Austria, Slovakia and Poland also reported shortfalls.

Though the shortage was reminiscent of past disruptions in Europe’s fuel supply from the former Soviet Union caused by rancor between Ukraine and Russia, a spokeswoman for the European Union said Russia was consuming more gas at home because of a cold spell.

With the gas pressures tapering off, European Union officials on Friday activated an emergency plan for re-allocating heating fuel among countries. For now, no country has been compelled to turn off the heat or curtail electricity use.

In cold periods, the former Soviet pipeline system that provides about a quarter of Western Europe’s natural gas routinely reaches its maximum capacity, and consuming nations are encouraged to dip into reserves to meet higher demand.

Still, the squabbling over fuel on cold winter days has tended to bring out an ill temper in European officials that belies the ostensibly well-regulated, highly detailed contracts that are supposed to determine who will stay warm, and at what price, in the dead of winter.

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