Yuriy Prodan, deputy secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, held a press briefing on Monday, according to the President`s press-office.
Prodan said President Victor Yushchenko and Deputy Prime Minister Andriy Klyuyev had met today to speak about energy issues, especially how to guarantee gas supplies in Ukraine’s regions. He described property rights in the gas sector as “chaotic” and said the country’s gas distribution facilities were managed and used in a non-transparent way. He added that their owners were not interested in modernizing and developing the national gas distribution network and “bear no responsibility for taking such measures.”
The participants of today’s meeting in the presidential secretariat believe it is important to formulate clear rules for leasing gas distribution facilities to joint-stock companies and make such companies accountable, he said. “Some preparations should be made for this. It is also important to restate the value of the gas distribution network,” he said, adding that it cost UAH 9 bln today.
Prodan said Klyuyev and Yushchenko had also discussed ways to attract investment in the country’s energy sector to implement its long-term energy strategy. He said the president insists Ukraine must join the Union for the Co-ordination of Transmission of Electricity (UCTE) and to diversify energy supplies and adopt European standards in the energy market.
