OREANDA-NEWS. The Russian authorities do not consider the record gas prices in Europe, which fluctuate at the level of a thousand dollars per thousand cubic meters and above, to be profitable for themselves, and would like to reduce them by 60-70 percent, to 300-400 dollars. Bloomberg writes about this with reference to unnamed officials.

The agency's interlocutors called the Kremlin a supporter of falling prices because of the desire to maintain its influence on the European energy market for the foreseeable future. The high cost of fuel will result in a collapse in demand for it and faster transitions in the region to renewable energy sources, which will hit the income of exporters.

The last time before the current crisis, Gazprom sold gas to Europe at $ 400 per thousand cubic meters in 2013 and still considers this level to be ideal, and below $ 200 undesirable. However, since then, prices have been declining until, against the backdrop of the recovery of the world economy and the global energy transition, they have increased several times.

Last week, Russian President Vladimir Putin, during a meeting with members of the government, admitted that rising gas prices could affect gas consumption in Europe, and therefore on Gazprom.

In turn, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak noted that the situation will lead to an increase in the cost of fertilizers, and this creates risks of a new increase in the cost of food.