02-10-08 Russia will for the first time charge European customers over $ 500 per 1,000 cm (tcm) of gas in October after prices grew faster than expected, gas monopoly Gazprom said.
"The price of gas delivered by Gazprom to Europe has already exceeded $ 500 in October," Gazprom Chief Executive Alexei Miller said. "The dynamics of price growth have exceeded Gazprom's expectations," he said.

Last year, Miller had predicted the average price of Russian gas sold to European nations could reach $ 400 per 1,000 cm in 2008, an estimate he revised up in July to $ 500.
The International Energy Agency, an agency linked to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, in September warned gas prices would continue to rise until end-2008.