STORY: Gazprom has cut off the gas for some suppliers in Denmark and Germany.

The Russian energy giant said Wednesday (June 1) that it had turned off supplies to Denmark’s Orsted, and to Shell Energy, for its contract to supply Germany.

Gazprom had already halted supplies to Dutch trader GasTerra, as well as to Bulgaria, Poland and Finland.

It’s all over the firms’ refusal to make payments in roubles, as demanded by Moscow in response to western sanctions.

German, Italian and French companies have said they will engage with Moscow’s payments scheme to maintain supplies.

On Wednesday, German regulators said Shell Energy only supplied a small portion of the country’s needs.

They said the loss of its supplies could be made up for.

Denmark’s energy agency said gas buyers there would be able to switch to other sources.

The country has no pipeline directly from Russia.

Gas supply via Ukraine - a key export route for Gazprom - remained broadly steady on Wednesday.