Russ Oil-Gas

08 February 2008 - Upstream OnLine - Ukrainian state-run gas outfit Naftohaz Ukrainy today claimed it owed no debt to Russian giant Gazprom, and pledged that it would ensure the uninterrupted transit of Russian gas to European customers. "Naftohaz Ukrainy has no debts to Gazprom... Naftohaz will carry out its obligations to Gazprom and RosUkrEenergo by ensuring transit of all volumes in full to European countries," the company said in a statement. It said any suggestion of a debt of $500 million was a question to be addressed to RosUkrEnergo, an intermediary which oversees supplies of imported gas to Ukraine. Yesterday Gazprom said total debts amounted to $1.5 billion and threatened to cut supplies from Monday unless arrears were paid. President Viktor Yushchenko, due to visit Moscow next week, implicitly criticised the Ukrainian government of Yulia Tymoshenko last night for the new threat to supplies. Without naming the prime minister, he said suggestions that Ukraine abandon intermediaries and seek higher rates for transit would not necessarily achieve Ukraine's aim of reliable supplies and advantageous prices. Tymoshenko, who is to hold talks in Moscow later this month, has long sought to abandon the use of RosUkrEnergo and other intermediaries and wants discussions on new rates for Gazprom's gas using Ukrainian pipelines to supply Western Europe, Reuters reported. yesterday she said Ukraine had sufficient gas for its needs and for transit and pledged no interruptions in supplies. The Naftohaz statement said that last month it had received 4.72 billion cubic metres of gas against planned volumes of 4.85 Bcm. Volumes to be provided to Ukraine for the year through RosUkrEnergo, it said, totalled 58 Bcm, including 55 Bcm from Central Asia. "Only after the needs of Ukrainian consumers are met will RosUkrEnergo have the right to export to Europe 3 Bcm of remaining gas," it said. Nearly half that sum had already been exported, it said. Meanwhile, Gazprom said today it hoped to settle the gas dispute. "We hope that we will be able to reach an agreement," Itar-Tass news agency quoted Gazprom boss Alexei Miller as saying.