The EU, Ukraine and Russia recently signed a binding short-term protocol for winter that confirms Russian gas deliveries to Ukraine. At stake is Ukraine’s and Europe’s energy security. The Chief Executive Officer of Naftogaz, Andryi Kobolyev, shared with the CEEP team his insights on the brokered deal and what this means for the EU, Ukraine and Russia and what steps need to be taken in the future. CEEP: What’s the exact situation on the ground and what does the signed deal change? Andryi Kobolyev (AC): The situation remains challenging. Russian troops have occupied coal producing territories in southern Donbass, as well as the gas producing region of Crimea. The infrastructure connecting the coal mines in the East with the rest of the country has been deliberately destroyed making Russia the only destination for this fuel. This puts an additional strain on Ukraine’s energy needs and financial requirements this winter. Ukraine’s government has introduced a number of emergency measures to control demand, like setting up limits for industrial consumers and launching financial assistance programmes for energy efficiency projects for households. There is also a massive information campaign for energy efficiency in the country. In addition, tariffs for households have been raised promoting energy saving, although they still do not reflect the market level. We are yet to see the results, but we can say that the consumption levels are falling, even in the regions not affected by the invasion. Notably, we are witnessing that households have started cutting their gas consumption for the first time in years. With the Brussels deal, Naftogaz has secured a security-based supply of gas which [...]
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