Photo from UNIAN
After more than a month of suspended gas imports from Russia, Ukraine's Minister of Energy and Coal Industry Volodymyr Demchyshyn announced at a press conference in Kyiv today that Ukraine intends to sign a new contract with Russian energy giant Gazprom to ensure supplies during the heating season.
"Despite all the efforts we have been taking, peak demands [during the heating season] have to be covered by Russian supplies. Therefore, we are set to negotiate with the Russians because we need a contract for the heating season, and we will sign it," Demchyshyn said.
The minister also announced that the next trilateral meeting in the EU-Ukraine-Russia format are to be held in Vienna in late August.
Demchyshyn also noted that Ukraine expects to buy Russian gas at a price under $250 per 1,000 cubic meters until the end of the heating season.
"I think that the prices will remain [the same] for the two quarters, that is until the end of the heating season, at $250 [per 1,000 cubic meters] more or less. It will be an adequate level. Maybe even a little lower due to the fact that oil prices have been declining in the past days," the minister said.