CEO of NJSC Naftogaz of Ukraine Andriy Kobolyev has said gas transit through Ukraine may be terminated in early 2020 if a new contract is not signed.
"Whether there is a possibility that Gazprom will refuse and try to enter into 2020 without a contract, this has already happened before. Can they turn off the transit? Yes, this has already been done twice, in 2006 and 2009," he told a press conference Friday.
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As UNIAN reported earlier, the current transit contract between Ukraine and Gazprom was signed in 2009 for a period of 10 years. After its expiry (from 2020), the Russian monopoly plans to minimize gas transit through the Ukrainian territory to 10-15 bcm per year.
In order to preserve transit shipments after 2019, Naftogaz and the government suggested entrusting the GTS management to a new independent legal entity and attracting a European partner to this end.
