Ukraine has to increase the domestic price of gas to a market price in order to upgrade the gas transport system (GTS) and ease the problem with settlements with Russia's Gazprom, Director of the European Energy Community Secretariat Janez Kopac has said.
“The EU did not help Ukraine to cover its debt to Russia, as it accumulated it because of the previous government’s gas deals [concluded in 2009], and not because of the EU,” he said in an interview with the Uriadovy Kurier official government newspaper on Wednesday, while commenting on a $7 billion bill Gazprom sent to Naftogaz Ukrainy in early 2013.
“Unfortunately, Ukraine refused to increase its gas price to the market price, while Europe called for its liberalization. That’s why the gas debt issue emerged as a result of Ukraine’s own decisions,” Kopac said.
He also said the European Energy Community read about the signing of the gas deal with Gazprom from newspapers
“No one asked us for advice on the issue at that time.”
As reported, Ukraine refused to recognize the $7 billion bill presented by Gazprom to Naftogaz for taking up in 2012 less gas than contracted in 2009.
Kyiv stated that it had warned Moscow about its intention to reduce its purchases of Russian gas due to high price envisaged by the 2009 deal. Ukraine’s attempts to revise the gas contracts with Russia were unsuccessful.
Domestic gas prices for the population of Ukraine are many times lower than that for the industrial sector. The Ukrainian government has stated that it will not increase the gas price for the population until the contract with Gazprom is revised, although the International Monetary Fund insists on this.
