Energy minister says evaluation of Ukraine's gas transport system will be completed within a month

The evaluation of the assets of the Ukrainian gas transport system will be completed in three or four weeks, and then Ukraine will start preparing a model of gas transport consortium, Ukrainian Energy and Coal Industry Minister Yuriy Boiko has said.

"The consortium is a model of the future of our gas transport system. We will complete the evaluation process in the next three or four weeks," he said at the 9th Yalta Annual Meeting on Friday.

"We will hold talks with our future partners, learn how much it will cost, and start the process of preparing this model," Boiko said.

He recalled that Ukraine intended to involve the EU and Russia in this model.

As reported, late in March 2012, Naftogaz Ukrainy declared Kyiv-based Baker Tilly Ukraine, an independent member of Baker Tilly International, the winner of a tender to choose an expert for the evaluation of the assets of the Ukrainian gas transport system. The evaluation process was be completed by August 1, 2012.

Naftogaz admitted three companies to the second stage of tender trading for the system's valuation. Baker Tilly Ukraine was one and Duff & Phelps of the United States (UAH 4.4 million), and Ernst & Young LLC (UAH 5.92 million) the other.

Ukrtransgaz operates Ukraine's system of main gas pipelines and underground gas storage facilities. At the input, the gas transport system's throughput capacity totals 288 billion cubic meters (bcm); and at the output - 178.5 bcm, including 142.5 bcm to Europe and 3.5 bcm to Moldova.

Ukrtransgaz's gas transport system comprises 72 compressor stations, 110 plants and 1,451 gas distribution stations. The gas pipelines that the company operates total 38,600 kilometers in length, including main pipelines - 22,200 km, and branch pipelines - 16,400 km.

Ukraine possesses 13 underground gas storage facilities, with a total active capacity of over 31 bcm. Ukrtransgaz operates 12 of the facilities and the system of gas pipelines, and Black Sea Gas (Chornomornaftogaz), 100% of which belongs to Naftogaz, operates one facility.