German RWE ready to supply gas to Ukraine via Slovakia
KYIV. June 14 (Interfax) - RWE Supply & Trading GmbH from German is prepared to begin supplying natural gas to Ukraine via Slovakia, RWE chief Stefan Judisch said in Kyiv at the ABC: Ukraine and Partners conference.
"We have been delivering gas to Ukraine through Poland since November 2012. We have existing contracts with our Ukrainian partners and we plan to prolong them. We also plan to begin deliveries from Slovakia and this is the third [after Poland and Hungary], most important route," he said.
Final political and technical issues still need to be resolved before the gas deliveries via Slovakia can begin, he said.
Shipping gas through Slovakia to Ukraine - the so-called reverse direction - opens up opportunities to use gas storage facilities in Ukraine. "With the start to reverse flows from Slovakia, it will be possible to use Ukrainian gas storage, but that will only possible when gas can freely be shipped to and from Ukraine. I know that the European Commission and many other partners are working on that," he said.
The gas that RWE receives on the board with Slovakia is its property and RWE is at liberty to do whatever it wants with the gas. "When we receive gas at Velke Kapusany [metering station] on the Slovakian-Ukrainian border, ownership passes from the supplier to us or another buyer. It is already our gas. We paid for it and can do with it what we want. That is a key principle of the market," he said.
Ukrtransgaz previously proposed that Slovakia use one of four existing pipelines to delivery gas to Ukraine in the reverse direction, which would provide for receipt of 10 billion cubic meters of gas a year, he said.
Ukrtransgaz plans to sign an agreement with Slovakia's Eustream on pipeline natural gas deliveries via Slovakia in June 15-20, Energy and Coal Industry Minister Eduard Stavitsky said earlier.
Ukraine began importing gas from suppliers in Europe, by operating portions of its gas pipeline network in the reverse direction, after Russia substantially reduced gas transit through Ukraine and refused to negotiate a lower price. Ukraine from November 2012 began importing natural gas from Germany through Poland under agreements with RWE Supply & Trading GmbH (Germany). Supplies from Hungary began in April 2013.
