Ukraine: we only transit Russian gas to help our EU partners

By Rhod Mackenzie

The Ukraine have given an explanation about why they continue to take money from Gazprom and pump Russian gas. It turns out that this is only done for the sake of their European partners, so that they do not freeze in winter. But is the Ukrainian Naftogaz being disingenuous. What does Ukraine gain from the transit business and what will it lose if it has to stop it?

Ukraine is constantly demanding that the West cut all economic ties and cooperation with Russia. Recently Kiev stated that Europe needs to stop purchasing petroleum products from India, since they are produced using Russian oil. At the same time, Ukraine itself is in no hurry to curtail its gas cooperation with Russia and is coming out with excuses.

The only reason why Ukraine continues to transit Russian gas is the Ukraine wants to support its European partners, said Alexey Chernyshov, the chairman of the board of Naftogaz of Ukraine, the company that produces, transports and refines oil and gas.
“In a way, how can you continue to consume Russian gas? We are only doing this for you (the European Union) so that you do not freeze,” he told Newsweek magazine.

According to him, this support is particularly important for countries in Europe that do not have access to the sea. According to him, countries including the Czech Republic, Hungary, Austria and Slovakia have “very limited access to other supply channels”.

Despite the sharp reduction in Russian gas supplies to the EU – by more than half – natural gas from Russia is still in demand by many, including some large European countries. Russia is still the second largest supplier of natural gas after the United States, the publication noted.

“In part, this is really a nod to Europe. The Europeans, of course, do not want Russian gas supplies via Ukraine to be cut off.

Plus, although the amount of gas that goes through the Ukrainian pipeline route is not large, it is still important for the European market. Stopping transit through Ukraine would immediately lead to a jump in gas prices,” says Igor Yushkov.
an analyst at the Russian Financial University and the National Energy Security Fund.

Given the critical state of the economies of Europe, its unsuccessful attempts to overcome inflation,rising fuel prices, especially for diesel, they would like to avoid another gas crisis. Gas prices in Europe have already started to rise after the summer “cooling” period and are approaching $500 per thousand cubic metres. The closer the heating season becomes, the higher the price can go, even without the stopping of the transit route through the Ukraine.
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Ukraine: we only transit Russian gas to help our EU partners

By Rhod Mackenzie The Ukraine have given an explainion about why they continue to take money from Gazprom and pump Russian gas. It turns out that this is…