EU official in charge of Energy Union has not yet come to terms with Russia's decision to abandon gas transit via Ukraine

05.05.2015, (Interfax) - A peaceful settlement to the conflict in Eastern Ukraine and restoration of relations between Kyiv and Moscow would make a return to balanced, transparent commercial relations between Ukraine, Russia and the EU in the gas sector possible, Vice-President of the European Commission in charge of Energy Union Maros Sefcovic said during the European Court of Auditors Energy Security Conference in Brussels.

Asked about the feasibility of EU support for the modernization of the Ukrainian gas transportation system following Russia's statements about redirecting gas supplies to Turkey, Sefcovic said that supplying 60 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas via the new route would be a very difficult task.

He said that consumers of Russian gas had long-term contracts, according to which they received gas not at the border with Turkey but in Eastern or Central Europe.

Sefcovic said the Ukrainian route was economically attractive, and that Ukraine's gas supply networks and storage facilities were among the biggest. It is in the common interests of Ukraine and the EU to ensure that Ukraine has modern functioning energy infrastructure, he said.

Sefcovic said he welcomed the efforts of the Ukrainian authorities to reform the energy sector and pledged EU backing for those reforms.

Ukraine's Naftogaz and Russia's Gazprom signed their gas transit contract in 2009 until 2019. Some provisions of the contract are being challenged at the Stockholm arbitration court, at the Ukrainian side's initiative.