KIEV, November 5 (RIA Novosti) – Ukraine's Naftogaz will purchase gas from Russia's Gazprom only if needed as European companies will continue to be the main suppliers of fuel through the winter, Naftogaz's press service reported Wednesday.
"The conditions of the agreement allow us to purchase Russian gas to balance the system during peak consumption. For example, we see that Ukrainian consumers are using more gas than all of our other resources can provide [Ukraine's own extractions, EU imports, underground storage facilities] and we need additional gas. Then we will use our right to purchase gas from Gazprom. European companies will remain the main deliverer of import gas to Ukraine," the press service quoted Naftogaz CEO Andriy Kobolev as saying.
On Tuesday, state oil and gas company Naftogaz stated that it had transferred the first tranche of $1.45 billion of its gas debt to Russia.
After months of negotiations, the final round of gas talks on October 30 between Russia and Ukraine, brokered by the European Union, ended with the signing of the so-called winter package agreement securing gas supplies to Ukraine until March.
Under the agreement, Russia will resume its delivery of gas to Ukraine at a price of $378 per 1,000 cubic meters to the end of 2014 and $365 for the same amount in the first quarter of 2015, while Kiev must pay Gazprom $3.1 billion of its debt to the company before the end of the year.
In June, Gazprom switched Ukraine to a prepayment system for gas deliveries over its debt of more than $5 billion.
