Ukraine inks deal on reverse gas supplies with Slovakia

MOSCOW, Jan 15 (PRIME) -- Ukraine has signed an agreement on reverse gas supplies with Slovakia, Energy and Coal Industry Minister Eduard Stavitsky said on Wednesday, as cited by RIA Novosti.

“We have signed, sent it to Slovakia,” he said.

Stavitsky said earlier in January that Ukraine would buy solely Russian gas because the new price is the cheapest available. “We are basing our purchase rules on the best prices, liked we did before,” he said.

Ukraine, which was struggling to reduce Russian gas price, started purchasing gas in Europe in 2012. Kiev launched reverse deliveries in November 2012 via Poland under an agreement with Germany’s RWE, and in March 2013 via Hungary.

In November 2013, Kiev abruptly cut preparations for signing an association agreement with the E.U. in favor of tighter ties with Russia and Moscow-led Customs Union. After that Russia agreed to lend U.S. $15 billion to Ukraine and cut the gas price to $268.5 per 1,000 cubic meters from about $400.

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