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Gazprom says flow of gas to Europe uninterrupted

MOSCOW (AP) — An explosion at a key pipeline in Ukraine has not disrupted the flow of gas to Europe, Russian gas monopoly Gazprom said on Wednesday. The blast, which occurred Tuesday far from where government troops are fighting pro-Russia separatists, came a day after Russia cut gas supplies to Ukraine in a dispute over price and overdue payments. Moscow says it is waiting for Kiev to pay at least $1.9 billion of its $4.5 billion debt before the talks on clearing the debt and agreeing on prices could resume. Gazprom said Monday that it would need to start pumping by mid-October to insure adequate winter supplies for Ukraine. Vitaly Markelov, Gazprom’s deputy chief executive, told reporters on Wednesday that gas flows had not been disrupted and that European customers are receiving the contracted amounts. Markelov refused to speculate on the cause but said poor maintenance of pipelines in […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Ukraine Suspects Terrorism in Pipeline Explosion

A major natural gas pipeline exploded in central Ukraine on Tuesday, a day after the Russian energy behemoth Gazprom said that it was cutting off supplies to Ukraine in a dispute over pricing, and officials immediately labeled it a possible act of sabotage. Utility officials said that natural gas deliveries were not interrupted and that supplies to Ukrainian customers and other European countries were flowing through alternative pipes. The blast occurred in a sparsely populated area of the Poltava region, which lies between Kiev, the capital, and the embattled regions of eastern Ukraine where a civil war is effectively underway between pro-Russian separatists and the Ukrainian military. Video from the scene showed a huge plume of fire shooting hundreds of feet into the sky. The explosion destroyed a section of the Urengoy-Pomary-Uzhgorod pipeline, which runs more than 1,800 miles from Russia’s Arctic north through Ukraine to the […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Ukraine Able to Maintain Domestic Gas Supplies for Several Months – Officials

Ukraine will be able to maintain domestic supplies of natural gas and ensure the transit of Russian exports to Europe for at least several months despite Moscow’s move Monday to cut off shipments to Ukraine in a dispute over prices and other contract terms, officials said. "The Ukrainian side has prepared for this eventuality and we are ensuring reliable transit as well as supplies to domestic consumers," Yuriy Prodan, Ukraine’s minister of energy and coal, told a cabinet meeting in Kiev, the Interfax news agency reported. Andriy Koboliv, head of state gas company NAK Naftogaz told the same session that, "We have time to resolve this issue at least until December." Transit volumes to Gazprom’s European customers are flowing normally at 185 million cubic meters a day, he said. The officials noted that Ukraine’s inventories of gas in storage–now nearly 14 billion cubic meters–and imports from […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Gazprom Demands Ukraine Prepays for Gas

Russian state gas giant OAO Gazprom said Monday it will only ship fuel to Ukraine if it pays in advance, making good on a threat that could lead to supply cuts affecting European customers after late-night EU-mediated talks on debt repayment failed to yield a deal . Gazprom said it hadn’t received payment for a debt it put at $4.458 billion by the Monday deadline it had set. "Ukraine will receive gas only in the amounts it has paid for," Gazprom said. There was no immediate reaction from Kiev. The shift to prepayment is likely to lead to a reduction in supplies to Ukraine and could affect Russia’s shipments to Europe, the bulk of which go through Ukraine. Industry analysts say the initial effect on European markets of any supply disruption may be limited because of current […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Ukraine crisis: Russia halts gas supplies to Kiev

Ukraine says Russia has cut off all gas supplies to Kiev, in a major escalation of a dispute between the two nations. "Gas supplies to Ukraine have been reduced to zero," Ukrainian Energy Minister Yuri Prodan said. Russia’s state-owned gas giant Gazprom said Ukraine had to pay upfront for its gas supplies, after Kiev failed to settle its huge debt. Gazprom had sought from Kiev $1.95bn (£1.15bn) – out of $4.5bn it says it is owed – by 06:00 GMT. The Russian firm said it would continue to supply gas to Europe. Russia-Ukraine ties remain tense since Moscow annexed Crimea in February. Kiev says Moscow backs separatists in the east of the country. Russia denies the charge. ‘Blackmail’ "Today, from 10:00 Moscow time, Gazprom, according to the existing contract, moved Naftogaz to prepayment for gas […]

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Russia’s Gazprom reduces gas to Ukraine after deadline passes

Russian natural gas exporter Gazprom reduced supplies to Ukraine on Monday after Kiev failed to meet a deadline to pay off its gas debts in a dispute that could disrupt supplies to the rest of Europe. Announcing that Ukraine will now only get gas it pays for in advance, Moscow put the onus on its neighbour to guarantee the European Union receives supplies that transit through Ukraine. Kiev and Moscow failed to agree overnight on the price of future gas deliveries, with both sides refusing to abandon well-established positions: Russia offering a discount and Ukraine rejecting it as a tool for political manipulation. Talks were already difficult but were also clouded by the worst political crisis between Russia and Ukraine since the Soviet Union collapsed, including the shooting down of a Ukrainian military plane by pro-Russian separatists in the east of the country on Saturday and […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Russia's Gazprom reduces gas to Ukraine after deadline passes

Russian natural gas exporter Gazprom reduced supplies to Ukraine on Monday after Kiev failed to meet a deadline to pay off its gas debts in a dispute that could disrupt supplies to the rest of Europe. Announcing that Ukraine will now only get gas it pays for in advance, Moscow put the onus on its neighbour to guarantee the European Union receives supplies that transit through Ukraine. Kiev and Moscow failed to agree overnight on the price of future gas deliveries, with both sides refusing to abandon well-established positions: Russia offering a discount and Ukraine rejecting it as a tool for political manipulation. Talks were already difficult but were also clouded by the worst political crisis between Russia and Ukraine since the Soviet Union collapsed, including the shooting down of a Ukrainian military plane by pro-Russian separatists in the east of the country on Saturday and […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Ukraine’s Naftogaz Files Lawsuit in Stockholm Over Russia Gas

Ukrainian gas monopoly Naftogaz said Monday it is suing Russia in the Stockholm arbitration court to get a fair price for the natural gas it receives and to recoup $6 billion in what Kiev said was overpayment for gas deliveries over the past four years. After Moscow and Kiev failed to resolve a long-running dispute over Russian gas supplies to Ukraine, Russian gas giant Gazprom said Monday it would only ship fuel to Ukraine if it pays in advance. Naftogaz said in a statement it had filed a claim in the Stockholm court demanding a "fair and market price" for the gas that Gazprom ships to Ukraine. Kiev had been asking for a gas price of $268.5 per 1,000 cubic meters, the level that was agreed in late 2013 between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his ousted Ukrainian counterpart Viktor Yanukovych. On Friday, Kiev said it was ready to […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Ukraine's Naftogaz Files Lawsuit in Stockholm Over Russia Gas

Ukrainian gas monopoly Naftogaz said Monday it is suing Russia in the Stockholm arbitration court to get a fair price for the natural gas it receives and to recoup $6 billion in what Kiev said was overpayment for gas deliveries over the past four years. After Moscow and Kiev failed to resolve a long-running dispute over Russian gas supplies to Ukraine, Russian gas giant Gazprom said Monday it would only ship fuel to Ukraine if it pays in advance. Naftogaz said in a statement it had filed a claim in the Stockholm court demanding a "fair and market price" for the gas that Gazprom ships to Ukraine. Kiev had been asking for a gas price of $268.5 per 1,000 cubic meters, the level that was agreed in late 2013 between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his ousted Ukrainian counterpart Viktor Yanukovych. On Friday, Kiev said it was ready to […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Ukrainian PM Says Russia Wrecked Gas Talks

MOSCOW—Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk said Friday that Moscow has wrecked talks on natural gas supplies and ordered officials to prepare the country for a shutdown of gas deliveries from Russia from Monday. Ukraine’s gas monopoly Naftogaz said earlier Friday that it is ready to repay $1.9 billion in outstanding debt to Russia for gas deliveries if Moscow and Kiev agree on an interim gas price of $326 per 1,000 cubic meters. An official with the Russian Energy Ministry, who asked not to be named, said the ministry was unaware of Ukraine’s willingness to cover the debt or its readiness to agree to a price of $326. If Russia’s gas monopoly Gazprom doesn’t receive the debt repayment by 1000 Moscow time (0600 GMT) Monday, it will halt gas supplies, switching to a prepayment system. Mr. Yatsenyuk claimed that Moscow has deliberately declined to settle the gas dispute with Kiev, […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple