Ukraine will not bring Ukrtransgaz under control of the government

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The Ukrainian government abandoned its previous decision to bring the nation’s natural gas transport company under the direct control of the Energy Ministry.

Deputy Prime Minister and Economy Minister Stepan Kubiv said he is not going to implement plans to detach Ukrtransgaz from the state-run gas company Naftogaz, according to reports on Monday.

“I am ready to admit, that in making the decision we did not undertake proper consultations – this is a technical, and in some respects, political moment. In connection with this, my decision as a minister [from Sept. 7] has been suspended,” Kubiv said in a statement.

Some experts suppose that the reversal is caused by pressure exerted by Ukraine’s Western creditors, who considered the “power grab” as a deviation from agreed-upon conditions that were expected to lead to the establishment of credit lines for natural gas supplies during winter. The probable detachment of Ukrtransgaz would have broken the terms of Kiev’s $300 million loan from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).