KIEV/MOSCOW, January 6 (RIA Novosti) - Ukrainian state-owned oil and gas company Naftogaz will not buy Russian natural gas from RosUkrEnergo in 2006, a Naftogaz spokesman said Friday.
RosUkrEnergo is owned by a subsidiary of Russian energy giant Gazprom and Raiffeisen Bank, and transports gas from Central Asia to Ukraine.
"We do not currently have a need for Russian natural gas on our energy balance," Naftogaz First Deputy Chairman Andrei Lopushansky said. He added that an agreement had been reached with RosUkrEnergo and Gazprom on Central Asian gas supply to Ukraine.
Commenting on this statement, Gazprom spokesman Sergei Kupriyanov said that Gazprom had sold the gas intended for Ukraine to RosUkrEnergo in accordance with the European pricing formula.
"It is quite clear on what terms RosUkrEnergo will provide gas to Ukrainian consumers. However, it is a question of secondary importance for us because we have solved our main problems," he said.
Kupriyanov said that Gazprom, Naftogaz, and RosUkrEnergo had agreed on separate contracts for gas transit, with transit terms fixed for five years, on cash payment instead of the previous barter arrangement, and on a far more transparent gas transit scheme.
