Swiss Ostchem Gas Trading study Turkmen gas supplies to Ukraine
Ostchem Gas Trading AG, registered in Switzerland, began negotiating on transit with suppliers, including those from Turkmenistan, as well as Russian Gazprom to provide Ukraine with natural gas, an article of "Kommersant-Ukraine ("Ъ"), which refers to its sources, said, Trend news agency reported.
The company was registered by businessman Dmitry Firtash.
The article says that a source close to this businessman said that in 2013 Ostchem Gas Trading intends to import 8.124 billion cubic meters of gas, of which two billion cubic meters will be sold to industrial customers that are not included in the group.
Ostchem combines four Ukrainian nitrogen fertilizer producers: Nitrogen, Stirol concern, Severodonetsk nitrogen and Rovnoazot and has been importing gas to Ukraine since 2011.
"Ostchem began negotiations on this gas transit with Turkmen and Kazakh suppliers, as well as with Gazprom and the volume of supplies can be increased in the future," interlocutor said.
Kommersant cited the experts' opinion that a new trader's joining the market will reduce fuel prices in the country, but will hit the economy of the Ukrainian Naftogaz.
The cost of gas, to be supplied by Ostchem Gas, is unknown. But now the price on fuel, delivered by Ostchem Holding, is less than that of Naftogaz, the State Customs Committee reported earlier.
Russia and Turkmenistan are major natural gas suppliers to the world markets in the CIS area. Russia received Turkmen gas for re-export to the Central Asia - Center (CAC) gas pipeline through Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, which, was monopolized by Russian Gazprom after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
Currently, the pipeline Middle Asia - Center does not work at full capacity. Russia under the influence of the global recession of 2010 reduced the purchase of up to 10 billion cubic meters of gas, which is four times less than in 2008. Russian companies participate in the development of Turkmen hydrocarbon resources.
Earlier, the Ukrainian media reported that Kiev is considering an option of importing about five billion cubic meters of Turkmen gas per year.