Pthe continuation of gas transit through Ukraine is possible even after the launch of the Nord Stream-2 ,but everything will depend on the market situation and the state of the gas transportation system of the republic, Alexey Miller said
Alexey Miller
The head of Gazprom, Alexey Miller, said that the company is ready to continue gas transit through Ukraine after 2024, based on the economic feasibility and the state of the country’s gas transportation system, RIA Novosti reports.
“Gazprom has always stressed its readiness to continue gas transit through Ukraine, including after 2024, based on the economic feasibility and technical condition of the Ukrainian gas transportation system,” the head of the gas monopoly said.
He stressed that “Gazprom” is even ready to increase the transit of gas through Ukraine “in total above the current transit obligations”, but this issue should be resolved “on market conditions and at market prices”.
Commenting on the accusations against Russia of using energy carriers as a tool of pressure on other countries, Miller said that Gazprom has always approached Nord Stream 2 as an economic project and its goal is to ensure the reliability, stability and diversification of gas supplies to the EU market.
Miller noted that the gas supplied via the Nord Stream-2 will be cheaper for end users in Europe due to a shorter transport route. Among other advantages, the head of Gazprom called compliance with all the necessary modern environmental requirements. “CO2 emissions through Nord Stream-2 are 5.6 times lower (including by reducing the number of compressor stations) than for the Ukrainian route,” he added.
The continuation of the “Ukrainian transit” was one of the conditions of the deal on the “Nord Stream-2” between the United States and Germany. The joint statement of the two countries says that Germany will seek to extend the contract for the transit of Russian gas through Ukraine for another ten years after 2024, and Berlin and Washington will also help Kiev with the diversification of energy sources. Under these conditions, the United States is ready to abandon attempts to stop the construction of a new Russian-German gas pipeline.
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After the announcement of the agreement, the representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, said that it was strange for Russia to hear statements about mandatory gas transit through Ukraine for ten years without taking into account the economic component. “Of course, there is still hope that common sense among our Western partners will prevail and there will be a reasonable solution based not on political speculation, phobias and myths, but on pragmatic economic calculations,” she said.
Ukraine (as well as Poland) condemned the conclusion of the agreement, even on the terms of extending gas transit through its territory. In a joint statement, Kiev and Warsaw stressed that the decision of the United States and Germany created additional political, military and energy threats to Central Europe.
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