Gazprom officially offers Ukraine one-year gas transit contract
On Monday, Gazprom sent Naftogaz of Ukraine an official offer to extend the current gas transit contract by one year or to sign a new one-year contract, Interfax reports.
As a precondition, all lawsuits and claims in international arbitration courts must be withdrawn.
This would also include the withdrawal of the Ukrainian Anti-Monopoly Committee’s fine against Gazprom for economic competition violations and of Naftogaz’s motion to have the European Commission investigate the Russian company.
Gazprom also wants to know Ukraine’s stance on buying Russian gas directly starting in 2020. Ukraine has not bought Russian gas since 2015.
Naftogaz of Ukraine has confirmed that it received an official transit contract offer from Gazprom. Naftogaz director Yuriy Vitrenko said that the document had been faxed through.
“We have finally received by fax the offer from Gazprom which all the media is writing about (including the content of this offer). We will examine it closely and give a constructive response soon,” Vitrenko wrote on Facebook.
He promised that Ukraine will be a reliable partner to Europe, transporting gas in full compliance with European regulations.
On January 1, 2020, the current 10 year gas transit contract between Naftogaz of Ukraine and the Russian gas monopoly Gazprom will expire.
With the help of the European Commission, Ukraine has been trying to get Gazprom to sign a new 10-year contract for the transit of up to 90 billion cubic meters per year. However, Naftogaz is skeptical whether it will be signed, and Vitrenko said that the company should prepare for gas transit to stop in 2020.
In 2020, Russia expects to complete the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, which will enable it to minimize its use of Ukraine’s gas transportation system.