Ukraine govt says needs additional 5 bcm of gas for winter
KYIV, Sept 11 (Reuters) – Ukraine needs an additional five
billion cubic metres (bcm) of natural gas to get through the
coming cold season without difficulties, Deputy Prime Minister
Volodymyr Groisman said on Thursday.
Ukraine relies heavily on Russia for gas imports but Moscow
halted them in mid-June in a dispute with Kyiv over pricing.
Kyiv has turned to European Union countries to help compensate
for the shortfall.
European operators said Russia’s gas monopoly Gazprom
reduced gas supplies to Poland and Slovakia in recent
days Gazprom says it is pumping supplies
according to contracts.
“We will face a deficit of five bcm,” said Groisman, whose
country is embroiled in a dispute with Russia over a conflict in
eastern Ukraine.
The Ukrainian government will try to offset the shortfall by
lowering heating temperatures for residential users, by reducing
supplies to industry and by replacing gas with other kinds of
fuel, the minister added.
(Reporting by Pavel Polityuk, writing by Gareth Jones)