The dispute between Ukraine and Russia over gas supplies in the winter of 2005-06 was a wake-up call to European consumers that the energy supplies they took for granted could not always be relied on. The latest disagreement does not look like having the same shock value.

Warm weather, high levels of gas storage in the European Union, and hopes that the dispute will soon be resolved are all encouraging expectations that the dispute will have no impact on European supplies. Gas prices in the EU have not so far been affected. But if the row were to drag on as the weather worsens, European consumers could feel the effects, with Italy the country most at risk.