Dozens die in Russian cold snap
Some 24 people have died of exposure in Russia as freezing winter temperatures plunged to minus 30C overnight.

Many schools and businesses are shut, electrical billboards turned off, cars were unable to start and trolley buses put out of action by snapped cables.

Energy consumption hit new highs as the Russians - normally inured to extreme cold - struggled to keep warm.

Russia denies it has cut gas exports to Europe to meet domestic demand. Italy said it lost 5% of its imports.

Moscow's First Deputy Mayor, Pyotr Askyono, said on television that temperatures on Thursday night are forecast to fall even lower than they did overnight on Wednesday.

At least two people reportedly died of hypothermia in the city on Wednesday night.

A further 12 died in freezing conditions in the Novgorod region, northwest of Moscow, Interfax news agency reports.

In Volgograd, a region southeast of Moscow more accustomed to milder temperatures, some 10 people died of exposure, the Itar-Tass news agency says.

Energy 'crisis'

Electricity consumption across the country reportedly hit 146,000 megawatts on Wednesday - the highest figure since the collapse of the Soviet Union 15 years ago.

Italy has meanwhile said it has had to tap into its gas reserves to account for a 5% drop in supplies from Russia.

Italian Industry Minister Claudio Scajola has summoned a crisis meeting of energy firms to debate the issue.

Reports say Russian gas flows to parts of Europe have fallen by as much as 20%.

A spokeswoman for Russia's state-owned gas giant, Gazprom, was quoted by the AFP news agency denying the reports.

"We are fulfilling our obligations," she said.