MOSCOW, September 3 (RIA Novosti) - Gazprom expects Ukraine to increase gas transit fees by up to 58% in 2010, a spokesman for the Russian energy giant said on Thursday.

"Gazprom's current forecast [for the gas transit fee] for next year is $2.56-$2.7 per 1,000 cubic meters per 100 km," Sergei Kupriyanov said.

Gazprom currently pays $1.7 per 1,000 cubic meters per 100 km for Russian natural gas transit across Ukraine.

Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko said on Thursday that Kiev would raise Russian natural gas transit fees by 65-70% in 2010, depending on oil prices.

Gas prices are linked to oil prices with a time lag of about six months.

Ukraine's national gas company Naftogaz said in financial statements on Wednesday that it expected Russian natural gas transit fees to rise 57-60% from 2010.

Russia, which supplies around one quarter of Europe's gas, briefly shut down supplies via Ukraine's pipeline system at the start of the year during a dispute over Kiev's debt for supplies. Ukraine transits around 80% of Russia's Europe-bound gas.