Italian oil and gas company Eni SpA said it expected natural gas supplies from Russia to fall 16.2 percent below requested volumes on Saturday.

Eni has reported frequent shortages of its gas supply from Russia in recent weeks since Russia reduced gas supplies to a number of customers due to the extremely cold weather, which has led to an increased consumption of gas in its own territory.

The Italian company said because of the shortfall, Italy's gas supply will be 3.8 percent below the expected levels on Saturday even though it will tap into existing stocks to offset the effect.

Last month, Russia's natural gas monopoly Gazprom halted supplies to Ukraine over a price dispute, leading to sharp drops in supplies to countries in western Europe.

Most of the Russian gas that goes to European consumers moves through Ukraine's pipeline network.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov pledged during a trip to Rome on Tuesday that his country will study other delivery routes to prevent future shortfalls.

Source: Xinhua