Russian gas pipelines have created a colossal problem for Ukraine – Romanenko
Ukrainian goods are on average more expensive than other countries due to energy inefficiency.
Ukrainian political scientist Yuriy Romanenko stated this on the air of the internet channel "Politeka", reports a correspondent of "PolitNavigator".
“Ukraine is a monstrously energy-inefficient country, because our product costs, if we take a unit of energy for production, are several times higher than in the advanced countries of the world. Accordingly, our price for the final product is higher and we incur more costs,” he said.
In addition, the expert noted that if Ukraine is finally deprived of the transit of Russian gas, Kyiv will have to independently ensure the purchase of gas for transit within the country, and this is a huge expense.
“Therefore, this winter and the situation that has arisen due to the energy crisis in Europe is a moment of truth. Because Nord Stream 2, Turkish Stream, all these bypass routes that Russia built, created a new problem, because after the launch of Nord Stream 2 they declare: “We don’t need the Ukrainian gas transportation system. Yes, we have a contract until 2024, we are even ready to pay some money for it,” the political scientist noted.
"But this doesn't solve the problem for Ukraine, because if Russian gas disappears from our GTS, Ukraine begins to incur significant costs associated with maintaining pressure in the GTS pipes. Even to pump gas domestically, we will need some volume of gas to maintain this GTS, and all of this requires money," Romanenko concluded.
As a reminder, Kyiv previously announced that, due to a significant coal shortage, Ukraine would have to convert its thermal power plants to gas, which would require the allocation of billions of dollars from its gold and foreign exchange reserves.
Russian gas pipelines have created a colossal problem for Ukraine – Romanenko