There will be no "gas" fines or crisis

Naftogaz Ukraine assures that Russia’s Gasprom will not impose fines for the shortage of natural gas orders in 2009.

"In Moscow we signed (with Gazprom) an addendum to the gas contract which entails a decrease in volumes for 2009 and confirmed gas volumes for 2010. Thus we don’t have a gas order shortage and we have clearly outlined gas amounts for 2010 so that when the whole country exhorted that we’ll get fined, today these topics don’t exist," announced today Oleh Dubyna, head of Naftohaz Ukraine at a press conference.

He explained that in 2009, gas consumption dropped by 40% due to the financial crisis and fall in industrial production. "If earlier Ukraine’s industry took in close to 30 bcm of gas, then this year it only used 18," noted Oleh Dubyna.

He also stressed that this trend is noticed in other countries, which is why he was able to come to an agreement with Gazprom concerning the decrease in gas volume for 2009 and 2010.

Oleh Dubyna predicts that Ukraine will receive the final price of gas for 2010 in December. "I think we will receive the final gas price for the first quarter of 2010 in December…right now negotiations are underway with our partners," he reported.

Oleh Dubyna assured that in the beginning of 2010 there will be no gas crisis.

As is generally known, Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko announced that she doesn’t see any grounds for political intrigue regarding the gas issue.
"Ukraine has almost for a year worked calmly and despite the hysteria of politicians, it has paid for gas on time, pumped and stored gas without problems and it’s unpleasant for me to see political intrigue surround the gas issue because it is unfounded," emphasized Yulia Tymoshenko.

In addition to this, she said, there is a solid agreement with the Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin in which Ukraine will not have to pay fines for not purchasing the prior agreed to amount of gas.

"As we agreed at the end of the year during which we’ll be drafting our annual acts that we’ll sign everything so that it will be confirmed on paper," stressed Yulia Tymoshenko.