European Commissioner for Energy Gunther Oettinger has said that it will be possible to deliver gas from Europe to Ukraine by mid-2014.
In an interview with Ukrainian journalists in Brussels on Friday, after a meeting with Ukrainian Energy and Coal Industry Minister Yuriy Boiko, Oettinger said that there were technical possibilities for reversing the gas supplies on the border between Ukraine and Slovakia, which is a member of the EU.
"We need some time (to settle technical issues of the deliveries), but we think that the reverse supplies may be ready by mid-2014," he said.
At the same time, the commissioner recalled that Russia remains the "most important partner" on the gas market for the European Union, as well as for Ukraine. He said they were interested to continue this partnership. "But our domestic market and our energy policy show the need to diversify the gas market. This means diversifying supply routes and resources. Reverse supplies are a key resource of the European gas market at large," he stressed.
Speaking about the meeting with Boiko, the commissioner named the issues they addressed. According to him, they discussed the development of the existing infrastructure, the plans for upgrading the gas transportation system, new technologies, and what can be done by Ukraine, by the European Commission and international financial institutions (the European Investment Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the World Bank).
The parties also talked about safety at nuclear power plants, about the investments into nuclear power plants, both in Europe and Ukraine, and what the support of the European Commission in this matter should be, Oettinger said.
For his part, Boiko added that the key issue, which was discussed, was that of the investment and financing of Ukraine's energy sector.
