Russia’s Gazprom resumes gas supplies to Ukraine

Russia’s state-run natural gas export monopoly, Gazprom, resumed deliveries to Ukraine on Monday after a 234 million dollar prepayment, Gazprom’s Head Alexei Miller, told newsmen.

On October 9, Gazprom said that Ukraine had requested 2 billion cubic meters of gas for October. Ukraine has since been trying to cut its dependence on Russian Federation gas, buying shipments from European nations which had bought it from Russian Federation at a lower price.

In June, Ukraine announced it was suspending all purchases of natural gas from Russian Federation over a price dispute after EU-mediated talks broke down.

Those interruptions have not only been problematic for Ukraine, where winter temperatures can drop to -20 degrees Celsius (-4 degrees Fahrenheit), but also for Europe, which relies on Gazprom for about a third of its energy needs.

The EU Commission has pledged $500 million in aid to Kyiv to help it pay its gas bills and prevent any disruptions in service as the months grow colder. “This is a huge risk”, he added.

“In 20 to 30 days, the gas volumes in the storage facilities will be significantly increased”.

But these reserves could not be enough if the winter is harsh, they warned.

Gazprom halted gas supplies to Ukraine earlier in the year after a breakdown on pricing talks.

Last week Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said a “real truce” had begun in eastern Ukraine but a long-lasting peace with pro-Kremlin insurgents would still take a few time.