Ukraine will not pay for Russian power supplies to Donbas hostilities zone – Ukrenergo chief
Yuriy Kasich, acting director at Urkenergo, has said that Ukraine will not pay for Russian electricity supplies to the rebel-held areas of the country's Donbas region.
Russia was notified well beforehand about Ukraine's unpreparedness to pay for the net power flows between the two countries' energy grids across five power transmission lines in the rebel-held areas of Donbas, he said in an exclusive interview with Interfax.
"There are flows from the Russian Federation to the uncontrolled territories. We see them and we know about them, but they are not taken into account in payments. Russia has been warned that we are not taking these five lines into account and Ukraine will not pay for this electricity," he said.
The Luhansk thermal power plant has been operating separately from the national power grid in mainland Ukraine since last year and power flows between Starobesheve and Zuyevska thermal power plants and Ukraine's national power grid have been minimal, Kasich also said.
It was reported that in late December 2014 that Inter RAO and the state company Ukrinterenergo signed an agreement to export electricity from the Russian national grid to Ukraine. The annual contract provides for up to 1.5 gigawatts' deliveries.
Ukrenergo announced that starting from April 16, Ukraine's national grid would operate in real time, without taking into account five power transmission lines in the rebel-held parts of Ukraine's Donetsk and Luhansk regions: between Peremoha and Shakhty (500 kilowatts), between Southern and Rostovska (330 kilowatts), between Amvrosiyevka and Tahanroh (220 kilowatts), from Kvashyno to Tyahova to Matviyiv Kurhan (110 kilowatts) and from Central to Tyahova to the Hundarivka sub-station (110 kilowatts).
In addition, on May 7, 2015 the Ukrainian Cabinet determined that LEO and DonetskOblEnergo, based in the uncontrolled anti-terrorist operation (ATO) zone, should buy electricity directly from local producers and supply to local consumers without the state company Energorynok. Sale and purchase of electricity between mainland Ukraine and the uncontrolled ATO zone is banned. Only payments for net power flows are allowed. The government has also banned electricity imports through the rebel-held part of Donbas.
Ukrenergo operates mainland and inter-state power transmission lines, as well as centralized control of the national power grid. The company is state-owned and controlled by the Coal Ministry.
