Ukraine's Fuel and Energy Ministry supports decision supporting fertilizer producers to directly buy imported gas
Kyiv, April 17 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Ukraine's Fuel and Energy Ministry has supported a cabinet resolution that would allow nitric mineral fertilizer producers to buy imported natural gas directly from gas extracting companies.
Ukrainian Fuel and Energy Minister Yuriy Prodan announced the position of the ministry at a press conference at Interfax-Ukraine on Friday.
"The Fuel and Energy Ministry has agreed the resolution. We believe that if someone can find somewhere to buy cheaper gas, let them do so," the minister said.
He also forecast that Naftogaz Ukrainy's income due to the realization of the resolution would not fall, as the state holding would receive funds for gas transportation.
Prodan also said that the prices of natural gas for industrial consumers this year would not be increased.
"We don’t plan to increase the prices of gas for industrial consumers this year," he said.
Earlier, the Industry Ministry reported that the government had permitted nitric fertilizer producers to buy imported gas directly from gas extracting companies.
The key consumers of natural gas in Ukraine are six nitric chemical plants: CJSC Severodonetsk Azot (Luhansk region), Odesa Port-Side Plant, OJSC Stirol Concern (Horlivka in Donetsk region), OJSC Dniproazot (Dniprodzerzhynsk in Dnipropetrovsk region), OJSC Rivneazot and Cherkasy-based OJSC Azot.
The Ukrainian chemical sector annually consumes around 8.3 billion cubic meters of natural gas, and the six above-mentioned companies consume around 7.74 billion cubic meters of natural gas.
The resolution has not been published.