On 15 April, the European Commission once again urged Russia to respect its supply commitments and Ukraine to respect its transit commitments.“Europe is a reliable gas client,” the spokeswoman for European Energy Commissioner Gunther Oettinger, Sabine Berger, told New Europe on 15 April. “The EU expects its suppliers to be reliable as well – i.e. to meet their commitments and to ensure a reliable and transparent gas supply to Europe,” she said.
Berger was replying to a question if the Commission was concerned that supplies to Europe may get affected if Russia stops supplying Ukraine over its unpaid bills. She was also commenting on a letter sent by Russian President Vladimir Putin to EU leaders, expressing “extreme concern” over the debt and warning that supplies to Europe may be affected.
Berger added that a “reverse flow” solution is also in the cards. “For the moment the Commission works with the parties concerned in order to ensure that the Memorandum of Understanding can be signed as soon as possible,” Berger said.
“A breakthrough in these long-standing negotiations would allow Ukraine to receive up to eight billion cubic metres of gas from Slovakia each year, in addition to what the country can already receive from Hungary and Poland,” the EU energy spokeswoman added.
On 15 April, German utility company RWE AG said it has started supplying gas to Ukraine.
Meanwhile, it’s clear that Ukraine is not able to pay its bills. Last week, Slovakia’s Prime Minister Roberto Fico said that only a third party, like the European Union and European Commission, can guarantee that Slovakia will get paid if the country helps Ukraine.
Asked if the EU can guarantee that Slovakia will get paid if we help Ukraine, Berger told New Europe that the Commission has no specific comment to make.
Russian gas monopoly Gazprom has also warned recently that European companies involved in supply gas to Ukraine through a reverse flow solution “should examine very closely the legality of this type of operation”.
On 14 April, the Foreign Affairs Council on Ukraine confirmed “the EU’s readiness to explore ways to assist Ukraine in securing its energy supply through further diversification, including through the rapid enhancement of reverse flow capacities, enhanced energy efficiency, and effective interconnections with and within the European Union. Such assistance must be combined with Ukraine’s efforts to reform and modernise its energy sector, in line with Ukraine’s commitments in the Energy Community Treaty”.
The Council said in Luxembourg thatit takes note of Putin’s letter of 10 April to several EU Member States. The Council asked the European Commission to reply, on the basis of consultations with Member States, to Putin on behalf of EU and its Member States, in order to agree on consultations with Russia and Ukraine with a view to ensuring security of supply and transit.
The Council also expressed deep concern regarding the unilateral increase of gas prices applied to Ukraine and expressed “a firm conviction that all differences of views on the price and conditions of gas supplies should be solved through negotiations and available legal mechanisms, with a view to stabilising the economic situation in Ukraine”.