Gas TSO of Ukraine LLC, operator of the gas transmission system, has signed agreements with all neighboring operators, namely in Poland, Hungary, Romania, Moldova, Slovakia, and Russia. “Now all the necessary technical and legal grounds have been created for the successful launch of the independent Gas TSO of Ukraine and for continued gas transit via the Ukrainian GTS from the Russian Federation to European countries from January 1, 2020,” Gas TSO of Ukraine said in a statement. The latest interconnection deal was signed with Slovakia’s Eustream. The two operators agreed to cooperate by European rules from January 1, 2020, at the gas metering stations of Budince and Uzhgorod-Velke Kapusany, according to Unian.info.

It is also noted that the interconnection deal with Gazprom was included in the package of agreements required for the extension of gas transit via Ukraine until 2025. Accordingly, Naftogaz signed with Gazprom a settlement agreement and a 5-year transit arrangement.

TurkStream begins pumping Russian gas to Bulgaria, bypassing Ukraine

Bulgaria began taking delivery of Russian natural gas via the TurkStream pipeline. The country’s energy minister, Temenuzhka Petkova, has claimed that the move will save Bulgaria tens of millions of euros per year in fees by avoiding transit through Ukraine and Romania.

“We are changing the entry point for gas supplies from Russia. The reason: the economic impact and the better conditions for Bulgarian consumers,” Petkova said, adding that the new route could result in decrease of around five per cent in gas prices, according to emerging-europe.com.

TurkStream will be officially inaugurated at a ceremony in Istanbul on January 8, which both Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin are expected to attend.