The transfer of Russian gas through Ukraine will not cease but will eventually drop to 10-15 billion cubic meters (bcm) per year, the CEO of Russian gas giant Gazprom, Alexei Miller said Wednesday.
Miller's comments came after German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on late Tuesday that the planned Nord Stream II pipeline between Russian and Germany could not go ahead without clarity of Ukraine's transit role.
According to the Russian gas giant Gazprom's latest tweet, Miller said the company has never raised the issue of abandoning gas via Ukraine.
'However, the Russian resource base has been moving northward and there won’t be the same resources in the central gas transportation corridor as in the past,' Miller warned.
As a result, transit of 10-15 bcm per year is possible, he said. However, he added that Ukraine would need to justify the viability of a new transit contract.
Miller did not specify a timeframe for decreasing gas transit through Ukraine.
According to Ukraine's Naftogaz, in 2017 Russian gas transit through Ukraine increased by 11.3 bcm from 82.2 bcm to 93.5 bcm.
Gazprom plans to decrease transit through Ukraine by activating two gas pipeline projects in the coming years.
The TurkStream project is a direct pipeline from Russia to Turkey with 15.75 billion cubic meters of gas capacity set aside for Turkey's use while a second line with the same 15.75 billion cubic meters of capacity is planned for Europe's needs.
The Nord Stream II natural gas pipeline project plans to deliver Russian gas to Europe through the Baltic Sea with a capacity of 55 billion cubic meters per year.
Many European countries such as Denmark, Poland and Lithuania are against the Nord Stream II, as they claim that it will increase Russian influence in Europe's energy markets.
In November 2017, the Danish Parliament approved a law that gave the authorities the power to prohibit the construction of Nord Stream II in the territorial waters of the country.
In response, Russian authorities said they would find alternatives should Denmark reject the existing route.
By Murat Temizer
Anadolu Agency
energy@aa.com.tr