Volodymyr Groysman/REUTERS
Gas tariffs will depend on prices of imported gas, the prime minister said.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman has ruled out a further increase in gas prices for Ukrainian households after it was decided to raise them by 23.5% from November 1.
Read alsoGas price for households in Ukraine to increase by almost a quarter
"An increase [in gas prices] by another 35% is out of the question. This won't happen because it is unacceptable to Ukrainian citizens, and I'm here on the side of people," he told a Svoboda Slova [Freedom of Speech] panel show on Ukraine's ICTV channel on October 22.
Gas tariffs in Ukraine will depend on prices of imported gas, Groysman said.
The official noted that the government had been negotiating with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for more than a year to find the best solution without raising gas prices for households.
As UNIAN reported earlier, Groysman announced on October 19 that Ukraine's government would raise the gas price for households by 23.5%, to UAH 8,550 (US$303) per 1,000 cubic meters from November 1. Noteworthy, the households will buy gas at the current price, that is UAH 6,958 ($247) per 1,000 cubic meters, until November.
The same day, the IMF said that its staff and the Ukrainian authorities had reached agreement on economic policies for a new 14-month Stand-By Arrangement (SBA) worth $3.9 billion.