Sarajevo faces gas cut this week

Sarajevo residents may find their gas supply cut as early as Thursday, local news agency Fena reported on Tuesday. The company BH Gas of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) could cut gas delivery on Thursday morning to Sarajevo Gas, said Mehmedalija Sijaric, a senior official at the Sarajevo Gas, in a statement, adding that some 60,000 families in Sarajevo would suffer as a result. Sarajevo Gas, which supplies gas to Sarajevo Canton, owed some 1.4 million U.S. dollars to BH Gas in February, according to Fena. The two companies failed to solve the debt issue after several rounds of talks. Though it was pretty warm during day time in Sarajevo, heating was needed at night in the household. Some households have the option to turn to electricity for the heating, but many residences rely entirely on gas for heating. Sijaric, however, hoped the cut could be avoided, saying gas delivery has never been cut to any one in Europe due to debt problems. BiH gas supply relies entirely on imports from Russia.