Photo from UNIAN
Only two things are important for European companies: price of transit services and guarantees of sustainable energy supplies.
Energy expert Maria Yakovleva has said Ukraine should negotiate directly with Europe the price of gas transit via its territory, which will allow undermining Russia's Nord Stream 2 pipeline project bypassing Ukraine.
She explained it is necessary to make the Ukrainian gas transmisson system (GTS) more preferable to EU than any of the new gas pipelines Russia is building, Obozrevatel reported.
"We have incredible opportunities, but we are not using them. I think all authorities in an independent Ukraine have always had the same problem – it's business relations with only one customer, the Russian Federation," Yakovleva said.
Read alsoGazprom to spend about $806 mln on Nord Stream 2 in 2019
According to the expert, today only two things are important for European companies. This is the price of transit services and guarantees of sustainable energy supplies.
"The price of transit services… Why do we need Russia here? We are a transit country. It's we who provides these services. So let's offer European companies an adequate, favorable price. They buy gas in Russia. If we provide them with transit services that would be more favorable than in any other 'Stream,' they will pay Russia for gas, but will choose our transit route," the expert said.
"The capacity of our GTS is four times higher than that of the Nord Stream. We have potential to reduce prices much more than the Nord Stream has," Yakovleva added.