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#41 - JRL 2007-212 - JRL Home
Ukraine To Cede Ownership Rights To Gas To Gazprom

MOSCOW. Oct 9 (Interfax) - Ukraine will clear a $1.2 billion share of its debt for Russian natural gas by ceding to Russian company Gazprom Export ownership rights to gas stored in underground depots belonging to the RosUkrEnergo company, Russian Prime Minister Viktor Zubkov said on Tuesday.

Gazprom Export is the export arm of Russian gas monopoly Gazprom (RTS: GAZP). RosUkrEnergo is a Swiss-registered gas transmission company.

"The volume of the debt (Ukraine owes) to Gazprom amounted to about $2 billion as of the start of October. Yesterday, negotiations at the level of economic entities ended, and on the basis of their results a set of measures has been approved to settle (the debt)," Zubkov said at a meeting in Moscow with Ukrainian Premier Viktor Yanukovych.

The negotiators had been Gazprom, RosUkrEnergo, Ukrainian gas supply company UkrGazEnergo and Ukrainian gas monopoly Naftogaz Ukrayiny.

UkrGazEnergo and Naftogaz Ukrayiny would pay the remainder of the debt - $929 million - from their own funds, the Russian prime minister said.

"We expect proper complete control (of the implementation of the debt settlement agreement) on the part of Ukrainian governmental bodies," he said.

He also argued that companies were more efficient in solving problems of this kind.

"Attention should be paid to the problem of the appearance and increase of the debts that Ukrainian companies owe to Gazprom," he said.

Zubkov also said that Russia sought more extensive cooperation with Ukraine in all fields.

"It is a priority of our foreign policy, we expect that our countries will develop an active dialogue that is based on confidence," he said.

"If the Ukrainian side is prepared to deepen integration, we need not only assurances but also concrete actions so that it is possible to build economic relations on the basis of equality and mutual benefits," Zubkov said.

Zubkov also said that work was under way to put together the agenda for the second meeting of a Russian-Ukrainian intergovernmental commission known as the Putin-Yushchenko Commission, from the names of the Russian and Ukrainian presidents, Vladimir Putin and Viktor Yushchenko.

"On the whole, we are satisfied with trade and economic relations. For the first half (of 2007), trade turnover between Russia and Ukraine grew 25%," Zubkov said.

This year's annual volume of Russian-Ukrainian trade may reach nearly $30 billion, the Russian premier said.

"This is evidence that Russia remains Ukraine's main trading and economic partner," he said.