ATHENS, January 22 (RIA Novosti) - Russian gas supplies to Greece via Bulgaria have resumed, the Greek state-run gas company DEPA said on Thursday.

Italy's ANSA news agency confirmed that deliveries of Russian gas to Italy resumed late on Wednesday.

Following a row over gas prices and the lack of a contract that has kept some 20 EU countries without gas since January 7, Gazprom and Ukrainian energy company Naftogaz finally signed on Monday a contract on Russian gas supplies to Ukraine for 2009-2019. The first gas started to flow on Tuesday.

"The flow of Russian natural gas to Greece via Bulgaria has been restored," the Greek company said in a statement.

It took Bulgaria two days to resume Russian gas transits to Greece once gas started getting through on Tuesday.

Greece started supplying 2.5 million cubic meters of gas daily from its reserves to Bulgaria on Monday in an effort to help its Balkan neighbor.

DEPA said during the tough period, when no Russian gas was getting through to the country that domestic demand had been met in full by its own reserves and additional LNG shipments. The Greek gas company did not expect to receive Russian gas until Friday or Saturday.

Greece consumes 6-7 million cu m of Russian natural gas daily. Russian gas deliveries to the country are expected to resume in full in the next few days.

Russian gas meets some 30% of Italy's demand.

Hungary, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Austria were the first four countries to receive Russian gas on Tuesday. Gas transit resumed to Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Poland, Turkey and France on Wednesday.