Posted on 08/23/2004 9:11:53 PM PDT by RussianConservative
MOSCOW - There are no problems left in the energy sector between Russia and Belarus, Russian President Vladimir Putin declared at a meeting with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko held in the resort town of Sochi (Russia), Mayak radio reported.
According to Putin, hindrances in the energy sector have been eliminated since agreements in the gas sector have been achieved. The Russian President stressed that Gazprom and Beltransgaz were working out plans of cooperation for 2005. Putin noted that growth in trade between the two countries had been 38 percent over the past 6 months, "which was the result of activities of entrepreneurs and state organizations."
SOCHI - Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov and his Ukrainian counterpart Viktor Yanukovich signed two intergovernmental agreements on Wednesday: on the transit of Russian oil across Ukraine and on strategic cooperation in the gas sphere, the Naftogaz Ukrainy company told RBC.
According to the oil transit agreement, Ukraine ensures the transit of Russian oil through the Ukrainian system of trunk pipelines, according to their capacity. The amount of oil and transit routes will be detailed in annual protocols signed by authorized persons. Ukraine will ensure that the amount and quality of Russian oil remain the same during transit. Russia and Ukraine will also cooperate in developing and implementing new oil transportation projects.
Transit fees will be determined without discrimination to all users of Ukraine’s pipeline system. Ukraine shall inform Russia about changes in transit fees three months in advance.
Coordination and control over the implementation of the agreement will be carried out by the Russian Ministry for Industry and Energy and the Ukrainian Ministry for Fuel and Energy. The duration of the agreement is 15 years, to be automatically extended by another 5 years unless otherwise decided by the parties.
As for the agreement on strategic cooperation in the gas sphere, the construction of the Bogorodchany-Uzhgorod gas pipeline is a joint Russian-Ukrainian project. Russia promised to deliver gas to be transited through the pipeline – from 5bn cubic meters in 2005 to 19bn cubic meters in 2010. The agreement on cooperation in the gas sphere was signed for the period until December 31, 2030. It may be extended for another 5 years. The members of the joint gas consortium will be granted a number of tax exemptions.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.