Ukraine plans to pump 2.2 bcm of gas that was paid in advance to Russia by late Oct – minister

14:38, 22.10.2015 1 min read

Ukraine plans to pump 2.2 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas for which the country paid Russia for in advance by the end of this month, Energy and Coal Industry Minister of Ukraine Volodymyr Demchyshyn has said.

"We plan to buy 2.2 bcm of gas as quickly as possible, every day we receive 110-115 million from Gazprom. This gas will be pumped by the end of this month," he said at a briefing in Kyiv on Thursday.

He added that in the future gas purchase would depend on consumption, which today is higher than the target, although gas stocks in underground storage facilities are bigger than a year ago.

The minister said that at present, the price of Russian gas is cheaper than gas bought from Europe, and the ratio between European and Russian gas could be changed in favor of the latter.

"Now Russian gas is cheaper, and the ratio [30/70% this year in favor of European gas] could change, but it would not be more than 50% for sure," he said.