Ukraine ready to stop gas transit with Russia - Orzhel

Ukraine seeks to preserve revenues from Russian gas transit but is ready to stop it from January 1, 2020, Minister of Energy and Environmental Protection Oleksiy Orzhel has said.
"Receiving funds for transportation is a priority for Ukraine. We are working very actively with our European partners to sign a contract with Gazprom under new European rules," he said live on the Freedom of Speech talk show on the ICTV channel on Monday, November 4.

Orzhel recalled that 21.7 billion cubic meters of natural gas are currently stored in Ukrainian storage facilities.

"If we talk about gas - and I am a direct party to negotiations on the signing of a transit agreement - we are ready to stop transportation through the Ukrainian territory. There's a record amount of gas in Ukrainian gas storage facilities. However, we do not rule out in any way the priority of signing a gas transportation contract," he said.

He stressed that a European contract excludes the presence of political issues in the negotiation process.

"In fact, we apply the rules that work in Europe. We cannot be blackmailed. If we ensure gas transit to Europe, if we ensure clear volumes, it means constant gas supply to European markets. [...] It means that there are competition and a lower price for European consumers," he said.