Explosions on Russian gas pipeline hit supplies to Armenia, Georgia - Yahoo! News

VLADIKAVKAZ (AFP) - Two explosions have ripped through Russia's main natural gas supply pipeline to Armenia and Georgia, halting supplies amid freezing temperatures in the two Caucasus countries.

The explosions occurred on the main branch and a reserve branch of the Mozdok-Tbilisi pipeline close to the border with Georgia in the early hours of Sunday morning, a spokesman for Russia's emergency situations ministry, Vladimir Ivanov, said.

"We're looking among other things at the possibility of terrorism, but it's too early to say at the moment," Ivanov told AFP Sunday.

Investigators, including from the FSB security service and interior ministry, were working at the scene to establish the cause of the blasts, Ivanov said.

It could take several days to restore supplies due to the remoteness of the mountain site in North Ossetia province and poor weather conditions, Ivanov said.

As the ex-Soviet republics of Armenia and Georgia were shivering in mid-winter temperatures, officials there confirmed the halt in supplies from the pipeline -- their countries' main source of natural gas.

In the Georgian capital Tbilisi the deputy energy minister, Aleko Khetagurov, said a main electricity supply line from Russia had also failed around the same time as the gas pipeline explosions.

"In all likelihood the population will not be receiving gas as early as today," Khetagurov said on national television.

"The import of gas has been completely halted. There is only enough gas in the pipeline for 24 hours. Talks are under way on supplies of gas from Azerbaijan and
Iran, but this will take several days," Khetagurov said on national television.

In the mountain republic of Armenia, officials from the gas distribution utility Armrosgazprom called on the population to conserve supplies and said they were cutting supplies to non-essential consumers.

"We've started using gas from storage facilities. Due to this Armrosgazprom calls on the population to use gas economically and if necessary to use alternative sources of warmth," the company's spokeswoman, Shushan Sardaryan, told AFP.

The cut-off of supplies comes amid tense relations between Russia and Georgia since the "rose revolution" in late 2003 that brought pro-Western President Mikhail Saakashvili to power.

In addition, Russia's relations with Armenia have come under unusual strain recently as Moscow has raised the price of gas it supplies to Armenia, a long-time ally.

Armenian President Robert Kocharian was scheduled to arrive in Moscow later Sunday to open an Armenian-Russian cultural event and hold talks with President
Vladimir Putin.