Yekhanurov's trip will follow up on the Oct. 11-13 visit by Ukrainian Fuel and Energy Minister Ivan Plachkov, who closed a deal on gas supplies for 2006 at $44 per 1,000 cu m, $14 less than last year, and secured Turkmenistan's consent to the involvement of Ukrainian companies in the development of hydrocarbon deposits along its Caspian Sea shelf.
In a press release summarizing Plachkov's visit, the ministry said that Turkmenistan had welcomed Ukraine's proposal to conclude a long-time bilateral agreement on cooperation in the oil and natural gas sector, but had stressed the need to make sure Russia's concerns were taken into consideration and proposed the three sides hold negotiations soon.
Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council Secretary Anatoliy Kinakh, speaking in the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius Monday, said that Ukraine would try to diversify its oil and natural gas sources before 2007. He also said the country would propose that Russia maintain the current price of natural gas - $50 per 1,000 cu m - into next year before the planned raise in 2007.
