Ukrainian Security Council Decides to Develop Gas Industry, Nuclear Energy

The Ukrainian National Security and Defence Council (NSDC) has decided to instruct the cabinet to improve the financial condition of the Naftohaz Ukrayiny national oil and gas company, the Russian news agency ITAR-TASS reported on 1 February, quoting NSDC deputy secretary Andriy Pyshnyy.

The NSDC, chaired by Yushchenko, met in Kiev to discuss energy on 1 February.

The NSDC requested the Cabinet of Ministers and the National Academy of Sciences to come up, within a month, with proposals regarding the development of the national gas market, Pyshnyy said.

ITAR-TASS quoted Naftohaz Ukrayiny board chairman Oleh Dubyna as saying that Naftohaz is going to supply 5.76bn cu.m. of gas to industrial consumers in 2008. Dubyna said that this volume of gas will not be bought by Naftohaz from UkrGazEnergo.

Ukrainian industrial consumers have been buying gas from UkrGazEnergo – a joint venture of the Swiss-registered RosUkrEnergo and Naftohaz Ukrayiny – since early 2006.

The NSDC also instructed the government to enhance nuclear safety, Interfax-Ukraine reported on 1 February, quoting Pyshnyy as saying.

Pyshnyy said that Ukraine is lagging two years behind global trends as far as nuclear safety is concerned.

Sources:

ITAR-TASS news agency, Moscow, in Russian 1946 gmt 2 Feb 08Interfax-Ukraine news agency, Kiev, in Russian 1916 gmt 2 Feb 08

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