Gazprom: press release of 13 January 2009

January 13 2009 10:40 Moscow

Restoration of gas transit via Ukraine

In full accord with the recent agreements, today Gazprom is resuming gas supplies to European customers via the Ukraine at 10.00 Moscow time, following a forced stoppage caused by improper actions of the Ukrainian party. The volume of the first gas shipment at the entry point of the Ukrainian gas transmission system via the Sudja Gas Metering Station will be 76.6 million cubic meters a day. These will include 62.7 million cubic meters to cover the contractual commitments to the Balkan states via the Orlovka Gas Metering Station as well as 13.9 million cubic meters destined for customers in Moldova.

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January 13 2009 11:10 Moscow

Once we feed gas to entry point of Ukrainian gas transmission system, it is to appear at exit point!

“Once Russian gas is fed to the entry point of the Ukrainian gas transmission system, the volume of gas at the exit point on the western border of Ukraine should be exactly equal to the volume of gas fed into the Ukrainian gas transmission system. An appropriate cable message has been promptly sent to Naftogaz Ukrainy. The message contains a request to ensure reasonable preparation of the gas transmission facilities in Ukraine for Russian gas supply via the transit pipelines across the Russian-Ukrainian border.

As of January 7, when Gazprom was forced to cease gas supplies, the transit pipelines in Ukraine were filled with Russian gas. Therefore, the pipeline pressure is supposed to be sufficient for ensuring synchronous gas flow at the entry and exit points of the Ukrainian gas transmission system. Once we feed gas to the entry point, it is to appear at the exit point!

Thus, the Ukrainian party’s statement that it will take 36 hours from the moment Russian gas enters the Ukrainian gas transmission system to the moment it crosses the western border of Ukraine sounds surprising and is inconsistent with the existing contract,” said Sergey Kupriyanov, the official spokesman of Gazprom.

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January 13 2009 21:10 Moscow

International monitors at work at Russian gas metering stations International monitors admitted to Russian gas metering stations back on January 12 pursuant to a list presented by the European Commission are currently engaged in monitoring activities.

Francis Guyon (Gaz de France) and Michael Husken (E.ON, Germany) are at work at the Valujki and Sudja metering stations; Gerald Linke (E.ON, Germany), Clays Meyer (E.ON, Germany), Gennady Stetsenko (RWE Transgaz, Czech Rep.) – at the Sokhranovka and Pisarevka metering stations; Christina Fenin (VNG, Germany) – at the Platovo metering station.

In the dispatch room of Gazprom’s Central Production and Dispatch Department in Moscow monitoring is being performed by Albert Grigorian (Gaz de France) and Catherine Sustek (European Commission). Ukrainian monitors have arrived only at the Sudja metering station – Alexander Verbovoy and Yury Stupan (Ukrtransgaz) and the Pisarevka metering station – Nikolai Bolkhovitin (Ukrtransgaz) and Mikhail Pozhidayev (Donbastransgaz). Ukraine’s authorized monitors for other metering stations haven’t been provided to the Russian side.

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January 13 2009 20:55 Moscow

Naftogaz Ukrainy also refuses to transit gas to Slovakia

“Today we have received another refusal from Naftogaz Ukrainy to accept Russian gas into its system, this time via the Uzhgorod corridor.

Our request to transit 22.2 million cubic meters daily via the Sudja GMS – Uzhgorod GMS route to Slovakia, which is especially hit now by the natural gas supply shortage, has been routinely rejected by Naftogaz. Naftogaz keeps bringing forward the same argument it formulated when blocking our supplies to the Balkans: they demand some “guarantees of transit over a continuous time period”.

With the contract for the Russian gas transit in force until 2013 as well as the Terms of Reference for the monitoring… signed yesterday by all the parties concerned, are there any other guarantees of long-term transit needed?! It has been clear for a long time to everybody in the world that the Ukrainian side must pass from lame excuses over to concrete actions,” said Gazprom Deputy Chairman of the Management Committee Alexander Medvedev.

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