County council to exit gas supply contract with Gazprom

Suffolk County Council is to end a contract its wholly owned company Vertas Energy has with Russia’s Gazprom.

The contract – reportedly worth £10m – was negotiated in 2019, commenced in 2020 and runs to October 2023. Vertas is one of several organisations to purchase their gas through this single contract.

Cllr Matthew Hicks, Leader of Suffolk County Council, said: “When Vladimir Putin made the immoral and utterly reprehensible decision to invade Ukraine, I instructed officers last week to review our contract with Russian-owned energy company Gazprom. I can confirm that we have decided to invoke our options to break away from the contract, ending our connection with Gazprom. Working with our partners, we are actively pursuing this outcome.

“The Government is imposing economic sanctions on Russia and this is a part we can play in helping to bring to an end this act of aggression on a free and peaceful nation and its innocent people.”

The council said that, from April 2022, all of its electricity would be from UK clean renewable sources (wind, hydro and solar), supplied by EDF for the next three years.