Authority looks to drop Gazprom as supplier in light of Russian aggression
A Cumbrian council has said it will endeavour to strike a deal with a different contractor after it emerged that Gazprom, a Russian state backed firm, is the supplier for two of its buildings.
A document seen by the Local Democracy Reporting Service reveals that Eden District Council has been using Gazprom as its gas supplier for both the Town Hall and Mansion House.
Controversy has surrounded the company in recent months as it is backed by Russia.
And the nation’s leadership has drawn ire from western nations since invading Ukraine in February.
The Government has received widespread pressure to cut ties with corporations and individuals affiliated with Russia and its president Vladimir Putin.
Gazprom Energy appeared on a breakdown of the council’s payments made over £500 in February 2022, £1070.43 was paid to the firm for supplying gas to the Town Hall and £708.35 was paid for Mansion House.
A spokesperson for Eden District Council said: “The council is one of a number of local authorities that receives energy services through contracts with the Russian controlled company Gazprom. It is publicly recorded that the company supplies gas for the council’s municipal buildings.
“The contracts were procured through a third-party framework and were put in place at a time when the council’s main duty was to attain financial best value. Clearly this is no longer the case and we are looking into ways that we might switch supplier at the earliest opportunity.
“The council utterly condemns the Russian invasion of Ukraine and gives our support to Ukrainian citizens.”
Central Government is reportedly set to take control of Gazprom Marketing and Trading Retail, the Russian firm’s British supply arm, within days.
The subsidiary of Gazprom is believed to be supplying about 30,000 British customers including hospitals, local authorities, retail chains and industry.