Ukraine gas company chief: "No cut offs for New Year"

Nov 23, 2009, 12:56 GMT

Kiev - Russian natural gas supplies will flow uninterrupted to European consumers at the beginning of 2010, a senior Ukrainian official said on Monday, according to an Interfax news agency report.

'This year we are going to meet the New Year at home,' said Oleh Dubina, chairman of Ukraine's state-owned Naftohaz Ukraina energy company. 'There will be no conflicts with Russia.'

Contract negotiations between Moscow and Kiev on gas delivery terms broke down in December 2008, leading to a blockade of Russian natural gas deliveries to Ukraine for the first three weeks of 2009.

The shut off dramatically reduced overall Russian gas volumes reaching Europe, and forced retail price spikes as far away as Spain.

A repetition of the conflict, the worst interruption of Russian energy supplies to Europe since the break-up of the Soviet Union, was now impossible because of on-time payments by Ukraine to Russia for gas, and an effective contract covering natural gas deliver terms for 2010, Dubina said.

'Everything will be quiet,' he said. 'We have 100 per cent of the contracts we need,' he said. 'We will supply the country with 100 per cent of its gas needs.'

Ukrainian consumers would be protected this Winter season from severe price fluctuations by reserves of 25 billion cubic metres of Naftohaz gas already stored in underground reservoirs, Dubina said.

Dubina's comments came in the wake of talks last week between Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, and Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, on energy issues.

Ukraine in contrast to past years was paying its gas bills on time and Moscow 'hopes' for continued stable supplies of Russian gas to Europe via Ukrainian pipelines, Putin said at a Friday press conference.