Ukraine Defends Gas Transport System in Brussels

Ukrainian National Security and Defence Council Secretary Andriy Kliuyev has defended his country's gas transport system at a roundtable meeting titled "EU-Ukraine Relations: The Road Ahead" in Brussels yesterday.

"We are concerned by outside attempts to create the impression that the Ukrainian gas transport system is unreliable," the Kyiv Post reports Mr. Kliuyev as saying. "This is not the case. I can say with certainty that there are no problems with the Ukrainian pipeline system."

The news emerges at the same time as it is reported that four companies have bid to assess the value of the Ukrainian gas transport system.

Tomas & Simonova, Duff & Phelps, Baker Tilly Ukraine and Ernst & Young have all submitted bids to appraise the value of the transport system, ahead of a move towards modernising the system, Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Ukrainian gas company Naftogaz Ukrainy Vadim Chuprun said yesterday.

The appraisal is expected to take place in August this year.

"Ukraine’s gas transportation system is a strategic facility, is an asset which has to help economic growth and it is a serious political argument," Ukrainian Minister for Energy and Coal Industry Yuriy Boiko said yesterday.