Prime Minister of Ukraine Arseniy Yatsenyuk has said that the situation in the energy sector of the country is critical.
“I think the situation is extremely difficult. We have a real crisis in the energy sector,” he said at a meeting on preparations for the 2015/2016 heating season in Kyiv.
He added that, in his view, circumstances are even more difficult than last year.
Minister of Energy and Coal Industry Volodymyr Demchyshyn, in turn, described the situation from a more optimistic point of view.
When asked by the prime minister whether he can guarantee the absence of rolling blackouts in the winter, Demchyshyn answered yes.
“Yes, I guarantee this if the funds (issued by Oschadbank for coal purchases) are used efficiently, if DTEK does not sabotage coal supplies, [rolling blackouts will not happen],” he said.
Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine Valeriy Voschevsky said that it is impossible to be sure of a stable passage of the winter season, as the government has not even received a forecast balance from the Energy Ministry.
“I have no right to embellish the situation… Last month we not only accumulated coal in warehouses but also “ate” part of the reserves formed earlier,” he said.
