Putin: Moscow to Extend Ukraine Gas Discount

MOSCOW--Russian President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday that Moscow will extend a discount on natural gas supplied to Ukraine by three months, Interfax news agency reported.

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said in a meeting with Mr. Putin that the extension was subject to Ukraine complying with the conditions of the contract and paying off its debt.

OAO Gazprom's (GAZP.RS) chief executive, Alexei Miller, said Monday that his company was seeking approval from Moscow to provide Ukraine with a discount on natural-gas prices for three months beginning April 1. Ukraine's state-owned oil and gas company, Naftogaz, said earlier on Monday that it had sent a letter to Gazprom seeking to extend the discount package to the end of winter next year.

On March 20, Russia and Ukraine restarted talks over gas supplies as a temporary deal that gave Ukraine a discount was due to run out at the end of March. The talks are being mediated by the European Union, which receives around a quarter of its gas imports from Russia--with around half of that amount coming via Ukraine. Ukraine has said that Russia's gas prices are too high.

The temporary deal was struck between Russia and Ukraine in October, ensuring Russian gas was transited to the EU without interruption and Ukraine received supplies during the cold winter months.

Write to Olga Razumovskaya at [e-mail]

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