Gazprom Export has announced that it stopped accepting Turkmen natural gas in January 2016, the press service of the Turkmengaz state-owned company has reported.

"Such a decision stems from the changed situation on the international gas market, as well as individual economic and financial issues that Gazprom Export has," the press service said.

Turkmengaz also noted that it was ready to "hold talks with Gazprom Export on a wide variety of issues concerning economic ties between these two businesses."

It was reported that on June 8, 2015, Russian gas giant Gazprom (MOEX: GAZP) filed a lawsuit against Turkmengaz with the Arbitration Institute of the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce, demanding a review of the prices set in the contract.

Since the onset of the 2008 crisis, Gazprom has tried to secure a review of the price it pays for natural gas purchased from Turkmenistan.

Gazprom has bought approximately ten billion cubic meters of Turkmen natural gas a year since 2009. But the Russian gas giant said in 2015 that it planned to reduce these purchases to four billion cubic meters.