Jan. 7 (Bloomberg) -- Slovakia, Hungary and Bulgaria were among European countries to restrict natural-gas supplies to consumers as Russian exports to Europe via Ukraine halted.

Slovensky Plynarensky Priemysel AS, Slovakia’s dominant gas company, curbed deliveries to about 1,000 industrial users, Economy Minister Lubomir Jahnatek said today in Bratislava, adding that “we have sufficient storage capacities.”

Hungary also urged industrial users to switch to other fuels, said Janos Zsuga, head of refiner Mol Nyrt.’s gas unit. The order affects companies using more than 500 cubic meters of gas an hour, he said in a statement. E.ON AG’s Ruhrgas unit will supply Hungary with 2.5 million cubic meters a day for 10 days, MTI reported, citing Energy Minister Csaba Molnar.

OAO Gazprom, Russia’s gas-export monopoly, halted all shipments to Europe via Ukraine at 7:44 a.m. Kiev time today, said Valentyn Zemlyanskyi, a spokesman for Ukraine’s state-run energy company NAK Naftogaz Ukrainy. The exporter had threatened late yesterday to cut supplies if Ukraine held up fuel meant for customers in central and western Europe.

Gazprom Deputy Chief Executive Officer Alexander Medvedev said today that Ukraine shut off a fourth pipeline to Europe after closing three others yesterday. Russia and Ukraine have blamed each other for the supply cuts as the countries dispute gas pricing and transit fees.

Most Exposed

Hungary and Slovakia are most exposed to the stoppage because they depend more on the fuel for energy than other European nations, according to UniCredit SpA.

Investors should buy protection on debt issued by Slovakia through the market for credit-default swaps, Gyula Toth, an analyst at UniCredit in Vienna, wrote in a research note today.

Bulgaria will also limit supplies, cutting daily gas use to 5.7 million cubic meters from 8 a.m. local time tomorrow, Economy and Energy Minister Petar Dimitrov told reporters. That compares with normal consumption of 12 million cubic meters a day. The country will seek compensation for any economic losses, he said.

The cutoff in shipments from Russia shows the “urgent need” for the 27-nation European Union to diversify its energy sources, Fredrik Erixon, director of the European Centre for International Political Economy in Brussels, said by phone from London today.

EU Dependence

“While Russia is making itself less dependent on Europe as a gas export market, Europe is making itself more dependent on Russian gas,” he said. “In 10 years’ time the EU will rely on Russia for 60 percent of its gas,” compared with 25 percent now.

Austria’s government said the dispute should encourage the EU to pursue the planned Nabucco pipeline project, which would diversify supplies to western Europe by bringing gas from the Caspian Sea basin.

“We’re under the impression that there won’t be a quick resolution” to the gas crisis, Economy Minister Reinhold Mitterlehner said today at a news briefing in Vienna, adding that it may take “some days or even weeks” to settle the dispute.

Austria, the Czech Republic and Germany were among European countries that pledged to meet domestic demand for gas while supplies are cut.

OMV AG, Austria’s largest oil and gas producer, said it’s able to tap stockpiles, get imports from elsewhere and use its own output, according to a statement. The country has sufficient reserves to supply households for at least three months, Mitterlehner said.

Czech Republic Taps Storage

Czech gas trader RWE Transgas is using supplies from Norway and underground storage to meet demand. It has also secured extra gas in cooperation with parent company RWE AG, which is arriving via the northern route along with the Norwegian imports, “fully compensating” the shortfall, Transgas said.

E.ON, Germany’s largest utility, has increased the amount of gas it gets from non-Russian providers, taking “more than usual” from Norway and the Netherlands, Kai Krischnak, a spokesman for the Ruhrgas unit, said by phone today. No customers will face shortages, he said.

RWE, Germany’s second-biggest utility, said its clients won’t face any disruption in supply. The company gets 80 percent of its gas from and through other countries and storage is “well-filled,” spokeswoman Annett Urbaczka said by phone.

Wingas, Gazprom’s joint venture with German chemical maker BASF SE, said gas supplies from Russia will be diverted through Poland to help counter shortages via Ukraine. The company is able to supply all customers, spokesman Nicholas Neu said.

France, Switzerland

France’s Finance Minister Christine Lagarde said today the country isn’t “overly concerned” because utility GDF Suez SA only gets 15 percent of its supplies from Russia.

Swiss gas supply has also “functioned without any constraints,” said Daniel Baechtold, a spokesman for industry association Swissgas. “We don’t expect a decrease.”

Russian gas comes to Switzerland through contracts with other European gas companies, including E.ON Ruhrgas.

Eni SpA, Italy’s biggest energy provider, registered a “substantial” interruption in gas supply from the TAG pipeline starting at 1 a.m. local time, the company said in a statement.

In Turkey, state-run power producer Elektrik Uretim AS cut output at gas-fired power plants by almost 50 percent, Chief Executive Officer Sefer Butun said by telephone.

Romania, bordering Ukraine, was forced to close the second of two gas-import stations and tap reserves to meet demand after shutting the Isaccea 2 entry point yesterday. Consumers won’t be affected, Economy Minister Adriean Videanu said at a briefing in Bucharest. “Reserves are enough to cover 60 or 80 days.”

Poland Cuts

Poland, also a neighbor of Ukraine, is receiving no gas from Russia via the country, Malgorzata Polskowska, a spokeswoman for pipeline operator Gaz-System SA, said by telephone from Warsaw. Zaklady Azotowe Pulawy SA, Poland’s biggest fertilizer maker, and oil refiner PKN Orlen SA will cut gas use from today, according to company spokesmen.

Finland, a neighbor of Russia, is getting gas through a direct pipeline from the country, Minna Ojala, a spokeswoman for utility Gasum Oy, said.

GasTerra BV, a gas-trading venture between the Dutch state, Royal Dutch Shell Plc and Exxon Mobil Corp., is not seeing any effect from the halt of gas exports through Ukraine, Ben Warner, a company spokesman, said by phone.

In Belgium, gas supplier Distrigaz SA said it doesn’t buy Russian gas and isn’t affected by the halt. Spain also doesn’t import gas from Russia, an official for grid operator Enagas SA said by telephone today.

To contact the reporter on this story: Amanda Jordan in London at ajordan11@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: January 7, 2009 12:26 EST