Naftogaz reorganization planned for 2011 - presidential administration
LONDON. Dec 7 (Interfax) - The reorganization of Ukraine's national oil and gas company Naftogaz Ukrainy, with the separation of production and transportation, is scheduled to take place next year.
"The restructuring of Naftogaz, which has various types of activity - production, distribution and delivery that, as has been talked about for many months, if not a year, has to be done in 2011," the first deputy Ukrainian presidential chief of staff, Irina Akimova, said in London Tuesday at a conference devoted to Ukraine and organized by The Economist in partnership with the Ukrainian fund Effective Management.
Akimova said the country's Fuel and Energy Ministry is working on it now. It has been discussed in detail with International Monetary Fund (IMF) representatives. "Considering our international obligations, which we assume to the IMF, this plan ought to be implemented in 2011," she said.
"The restructuring of Naftogaz is necessary for it to become profitable. We're hoping that in the next two years we will be able to resolve this problem. We'll begin in 2011," Akimova said.
Naftogaz Ukrainy, a major Ukrainian company, unites large oil and gas-producers in the country and is the monopoly for the transit and storage of natural gas in underground facilities, and also for the transportation of oil via pipeline over Ukrainian territory.