Slovakia starts shipping natural gas to Ukraine.
The Vojany-Uzhgorod reverse gas pipeline, which passed tests successfully in August, is to supply up to 10 billion cubic meters of gas per year to Ukraine at a price of USD 360 per 1000 cubic meters, down by USD 25 from the price offered by Russian Gazprom to Ukraine, according to reports of the Bulgarian National Radio.
Gazprom stopped direct gas supplies to Ukraine in June, the official reason for the measure being the pricing dispute between the supplier and the receiver.
The disruption has not affected gas transit to Europe so far but the talks have reached a standstill despite the efforts of the European Commission to act as a mediator.