REUTERS
Russia may provide a reduction in Ukraine’s natural-gas price retroactively if the conclusion of a new agreement on supplies of Russian gas to Ukraine misses the deadline of April 1, 2015, Bloomberg has reported, citing sources close to the negotiations.
Even if an agreement is only reached in May, the discount could be applied from April 1, Bloomberg said.
On March 20 there were trilateral talks in Brussels with the participation of Russia, Ukraine and the EU. The next meeting is scheduled for April, with the exact date yet to be agreed.
The provisions of the so-called winter package, including a discount on gas provided by the Russian Federation of $100 per 1,000 cubic meters, will expire on March 31, 2015. Earlier, Russian Energy Minister Olexander Novak said that starting from Q2, the price of gas for Ukraine without a discount may reach $348.
He said that under the existing contract, the Russian side may decide to grant Ukraine a discount, adding that this decision is made by the government. If the gas price is above $330, the discount may amount to $100, but if less it will be not more than 30%.
In turn, Minister of Energy and Coal Industry of Ukraine Volodymyr Demchyshyn said that starting from April 1, 2015 Ukraine will stop buying Russian gas, since it is not reasonable to purchase it at prices higher than in Europe.