Russia offers Ukraine 10 pct gas discount -report
(Adds comment by Russian parliament speaker Naryshkin)
KYIV Feb 20 (Reuters) – Russia has offered Ukraine a
10 percent discount on gas supplies on the condition that Kyiv
scraps plans to drastically cut its imports, Kommersant Ukraine
newspaper reported on Monday, citing a source close to the
talks.
Ukraine has long sought to negotiate a lower price for
Russian gas on which it depends heavily for its energy needs.
But after failing to do so last year, Kyiv has said it would cut
gas imports by a third in 2012 to 27 billion cubic metres.
Ukraine, which is paying $416 per thousand cubic metres of
gas in the first quarter of this year, sees a fairer price at
$250.
In a letter sent to the Ukrainian government last week,
Moscow offered it a discount of only 10 percent, Kommersant’s
source said, which is in line with the adjustments it made for
several European companies last month.
Kommersant quoted the same source as saying that Russian gas
giant Gazprom would not give any further discounts
unless it was allowed to buy a controlling stake in Ukrainian
gas transit pipelines, which carry the bulk of Russian gas bound
for Europe.
A Gazprom spokeswoman declined to comment, noting that there
had been no high-level talks between Russian and Ukrainian
officials on the gas price in about a month.
Ukraine’s Energy Ministry had no immediate comment on the
report.
Russian parliament speaker Sergei Naryshkin, who visited
Ukraine on Monday, confirmed that Russia had made a new proposal
to Ukraine but gave no details.
Continued…