Saturday 27 September 2014

Under Pact, Russians to Give Gas to Ukraine

Under Pact, Russians to Give Gas to Ukraine

By MELISSA EDDY and
With Ukraine teetering on bankruptcy after months of unrest, residents in Donetsk, mostly retirees, lined up to apply for and receive food donations this week. Mauricio Lima for The New York Times
BERLIN — European officials said Friday that they had brokered a deal between Russia and Ukraine aimed at ensuring gas flows to keep factories running and homes warm over the next six months, despite a dispute over the size of Ukraine’s outstanding bills.
Günther H. Oettinger, the European Union energy commissioner, met Friday in Berlin with the energy ministers of Russia and Ukraine to urge the two sides to reach an agreement that would resume the flow of natural gas from Russia to Ukraine for a set price during the winter. Russia’s natural gas giant, Gazprom, cut off supplies to Ukraine this summer after the two countries failed to reach an agreement on how much Kiev owes Russia for past deliveries.
Under Friday’s deal, which Moscow and Kiev are expected to approve by next week, Ukraine would pay Russia $3.1 billion toward its outstanding bill, in two separate installments by the end of the year. In exchange, Gazprom will ensure that at least 5 billion cubic meters of gas are supplied to Ukraine from October to March at the set price of $385 per 1,000 cubic meters, which must be prepaid before delivery.
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