Cold winter ahead for EU, Ukraine over Russian gas war — RT Business

Cold winter ahead for EU, Ukraine over Russian gas war — RT Business:

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AFP Photo/Sergei Supinsky

The EU could be caught in the crossfire of Ukraine’s gas gamble with Russia, as a shortfall in supply could mean a cold winter not only for Kiev, but also for the EU, which receives 25 percent of Russian gas via Ukraine.

In October, Ukraine's national oil and gas company Naftogaz said it had 17 billion cubic meters of gas in storage, but Russia’s state-owned energy giant Gazprom says it won’t be enough to heat Ukraine through the winter.

However, Ukraine will require 21.5 billion cubic meters, Deputy Chief Executive Officer Vitaly Markelov said on Thursday. Meanwhile, by the time Ukraine's chilly winter comes, storage will be drained to 14 billion cubic meters, according to Markelov.

“It’s a catastrophe,” Bloomberg quotes Markelov. “In these conditions, the winter transit of Russian gas won’t be possible because storage won’t be enough to compensate for Ukrainian consumer draw downs.”"

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