Naftogaz intends to act as gas supplier to public within special binding mechanism

Naftogaz Ukrainy has proposed the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine to entrust the company with the functions of a gas supplier to the population within the framework of the special obligations mechanism, Naftogaz chief commercial director Yuriy Vitrenko has said.

"In fact, the only role of gas suppliers [private companies belonging to the owners of regional gas companies] is to raise money from the population for gas produced and imported by Naftogaz... Naftogaz does not need such monopoly intermediaries, especially considering a very low level of payments by these companies to Naftogaz and a lack of opportunity to verify whether our gas was actually delivered to the public," he wrote on his Facebook page.

Vitrenko added the company would initiate changes in the Cabinet resolution on the special obligations mechanism with a view to exclude "gas suppliers" from the chain of gas supply to the public in the framework of special obligations.

"We offered the government to change its resolution, which obliges Naftogaz to sell gas to these monopoly intermediaries. If people do not choose another real supplier, the volume of their consumption could be automatically attributed to Naftogaz as a real owner of this gas and a real supplier," he noted.