Premier Azarov: Ukraine needs 7-8 years to reduce energy consumption of economy

Prime Minister of Ukraine Mykola Azarov considers that in order to reduce energy consumption of the Ukrainian economy the country needs 7-8 years, he stated this during a meeting with EU Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighborhood Policy Stefan Fule, the Cabinet press-service reported. The Prime Minister said that the Ukrainian economy today consumes a lot of energy, therefore, for chemical industry, metallurgy the gas price of USD 400 per 1,000 cubic meters means suspension of production. That is why, according to Azarov, it was important for Ukraine to revise the gas agreements not only in terms of the price, but also as regards the amount of gas that Ukraine has to buy, and the cancellation of penalties. Moreover, Azarov said that an urgent question remains the modernization of the Ukrainian gas transit system. He stressed that he has repeatedly offered the Russian Federation and the European Union together with Ukraine to invest resources in the reconstruction and modernization of the gas transit system.

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