Ukraine prepared to buy 2 bcm of gas via EU Energy Platform
MOSCOW. Feb 3 (Interfax) - Ukraine is prepared to acquire about 2 billion cubic meters of gas for next winter through the European Union's Energy Platform as part of joint purchases of this resource, European Commission Vice President Maros Sefcovic said at a meeting between the Ukrainian government and the EC in Kiev on Thursday. A video of his statements was posted on YouTube.
Sefcovic said he and Energy Minister German Galuschenko had already discussed how much gas Ukraine will be able to buy through the EU Energy Platform. This is about 2 bcm and Ukraine is one of the first countries to state such a need so clearly, he said, adding that this will be a priority.
Ukraine and the EU will also cooperate closely to develop the potential of the country's major asset, Europe's largest underground gas storage facility, Sefcovic said.
It was reported earlier that EC President Ursula von der Leyen invited Ukraine to take part in the system of joint gas purchases. The EU wants to use common market influence to the best advantage, she said at a joint press conference with President Vladimir Zelensky in Kiev on Thursday.
Sefcovic held the first meeting of industry representatives on joint gas purchases in the EU at the end of December. He said then that the next steps will be, firstly, to select a provider of services to organize an IT platform for aggregating demand by January 2023; secondly, publish cumulative demand and organize tenders to for offers in early spring 2023; and thirdly make a deal on the first joint purchase, including on long-term contracts with gas suppliers.
Ukraine's Gas Transmission System Operator (GTSOU) said at the beginning of January that European traders' interest in the country's gas transport system and underground gas storage (UGS) facilities had increased since the start of 2023 amid the drop in gas prices in the EU and the EU's own UGS being 80% full.
Traders from Poland, Slovakia, Hungary and Moldova used the services of Ukraine's gas transport system in 2022, storing gas in the country's UGS facilities or using short-haul services.
More than 1,000 customers from 26 countries stored gas in Ukraine as of the beginning of January, GTSOU said.