German utility giant Uniper still plans to buy Russian gas under a euros-to-rubles scheme, but says it wouldn't be breaching sanctions

• German utility giant Uniper said it will pay euros for its gas bill to Moscow, but it wouldn't violate EU sanctions.
• The payment, Uniper said, will also comply with the Kremlin's call for ruble payments.

With Russia demanding ruble payments for its natural gas supplies, German utility giant Uniper plans to continue paying in euros for its upcoming bill at the end of May, and it won't be a breach of sanctions, the company announced Wednesday.

The Kremlin has demanded that European gas buyers create two accounts with Gazprombank, one for euros and one that converts the currency into rubles. The European Union, however, said complying with this mechanism would violate its wartime sanctions.

According to a Uniper spokesperson, the company remains confident it can keep paying in euros, though it remains unclear whether it had opened a ruble account with Gazprombank, Bloomberg reports.

"A payment conversion compliant with sanctions law and the Russian decree should be possible," the spokesperson told Bloomberg Wednesday.

Payment uncertainty has mounted since the Kremlin moved to leverage its energy export business as a way to retaliate against Western sanctions. In April, Russia declined a ruble payment from a trading firm Germany had seized from Moscow, while also halting natural gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria.

Gas that comes into Europe from a transit point in Ukraine may also stop due to Russia's invasion.

On Tuesday, a Ukrainian grid operator said Russian gas that flows through the key hub of Sokhranivka on its way to other parts of Europe will stop on Wednesday. The Gas Transmission System Operator of Ukraine blamed disruptions caused by the Kremlin's occupying troops.