From the Baltics to the Mediterranean, Russia's Gazprom has long been the dominant supplier of natural gas to heat homes, run factories, and generate electricity. A global production boom led by US shale gas has turned the tables. While the US is now awash in cheap gas, Gazprom's European customers pay about three times the US price. European utilities are demanding price concessions that are clobbering Gazprom's bottom line. On Nov 2, the company reported second-quarter profits down 50%, as discounts to clients reached $4.25 billion so far this year. As recently as a decade ago, Gazprom accounted for almost half of Europe's gas imports. That figure has since fallen to about 33%, as customers switched to Norwegian or Algerian gas -- and, more recently, to imported American coal, which has become plentiful because US utilities are burning cheap gas instead.