REUTERS
The gas transmission system will remain in state ownership.
The Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's parliament, has passed a finalized bill that provides for singling out the country's gas transmission system (GTS) from National Joint-Stock Company (NJSC) Naftogaz of Ukraine, or the so-called unbundling.
Some 341 MPs voted for the corresponding draft law to amend certain laws of Ukraine over unbundling in the natural gas transportation sector No. 2239-1 with the required minimum of 226 votes, an UNIAN correspondent said.
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Introducing the bill for voting, head of the parliament's Energy Committee, MP Andriy Gerus said that the purpose of the draft law is to fulfill Ukraine's obligations to split the transportation of natural gas, electric energy and ensure the activities of the gas transport system operator, transmission system operator in accordance with the Protocol on Ukraine's accession to the Treaty on the establishment of the Energy Community, as well as subject to the relevant provisions of the Association Agreement between Ukraine and the EU.
"The draft law provides that 10 laws of Ukraine will be amended. In preparing the bill for the second reading, 169 proposals from MPs were received," Gerus said.
As UNIAN reported earlier, parliament on October 18 adopted the unbundling bill in the first reading. The bill proposes the creation of an independent GTS operator according to the approved Independent System Operator (ISO) model. The State Property Fund of Ukraine will transfer the gas transmission system of Ukraine for economic management to a state company, which will be created on the basis of PJSC Mahistralni Gazoprovody Ukrainy ("Trunk Gas Pipelines"), or the MGU, and will be subordinate to the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine. At the same time, the Cabinet of Ministers will have the authority to make important decisions regarding the activities of the operator of the gas transmission system of Ukraine.