Austria experienced no "stress" after halting Gazprom supplies, as it shifted to wind energy, according to Reuters.

Austria, which has not received Russian gas from Gazprom for the past 10 days, has seamlessly transitioned to alternative methods of generating electricity. Record levels of output from wind farms and hydropower plants will enable Austrian utilities to navigate this heating season with minimal gas requirements.

Source. This is reported by Reuters.

Austria's successful shift away from gas could serve as a model for neighboring countries that can collectively reduce gas consumption by compensating for lost electricity through transfers across European networks – including from Austria itself, according to Reuters.

For Gazprom, which has already lost markets in Northern Europe, this could represent an additional blow.

Although this year Austria sourced 80% of its gas needs from Russia, the share of gas in the country's energy mix has dropped below 6%, according to the energy analytics center Ember.

In the meantime, wind energy has provided more electricity than gas in 19 of the last 20 months. This means that during the previous heating season, Austria generated more electricity from wind than from gas for the first time.

A similar trend is observed this season as well, largely due to the growth of wind energy. Overall, it has provided 2.5 times more electricity generation than gas in the first 10 months of this year, with wind-generated electricity increasing by 18%.

If wind speeds this winter follow seasonal trends (with peak wind speeds occurring at this time of year), wind generation will surpass gas throughout the winter, leading to a reduction in overall gas consumption in Austria at such a crucial time for the country, notes Reuters.

Hydropower accounted for 68% of generation this year, wind for 13%, and solar for another 10%.

Austria's actions could serve as an example for neighboring countries seeking to reduce their dependence on gas imports. Additionally, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Switzerland, Italy, Slovenia, and Slovakia are connected to Austria by robust power grids and can decrease gas consumption by importing electricity.

On November 16, Gazprom cut off gas supplies in response to Austrian OMV's non-payment for October deliveries. The company refused to pay in order to recover at least part of the more than €230 million awarded to it by an arbitration court for Gazprom's cessation of exports to its German subsidiary in 2022.