Ukraine

KYIV. March 16 (Interfax) - Ukraine will have to pay Russia $700 million for gas delivered in March, Prime Minister Nikolay Azarov said during a meeting on Tuesday with Jose Manuel Pinto Teixeira, the European Commission's ambassador to Ukraine.

"It will be necessary to pay about $700 million for Russian gas," the press office for the Cabinet quoted Azarov as saying.

Naftogaz Ukrainy imported 4.6 billion cubic meters of natural gas in January-February, including 2.05 bcm in February.

The price it pays for Russian gas rose to $305.68 per 1,000 cubic meters in the first quarter of 2010 from $208.12 in the fourth quarter of 2009 and $198.34 in the third quarter.