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Gazprom CEO joins trilateral gas transit talks

Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak and Vice President of the European Commission Maros Sefcovic already started gas talks

BERLIN, July 17. /TASS/.Chief Executive Officer of Gazprom, Alexei Miller, arrived at the venue for trilateral transit gas talks between Russia, the European Union and Ukraine, TASS reports from the scene.

The CEO of the Russian gas giant has not commented on the meeting’s progress prior to its opening.

Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak and Vice President of the European Commission Maros Sefcovic have already started gas talks. The trilateral meeting is scheduled to begin at 15.30 Moscow time.

The need to hold negotiations arose primarily because two contracts signed in 2009 by and between Gazprom and Naftogaz of Ukraine on gas supplies to Ukraine and gas transit to Europe will expire at the turn of 2019. The issue of maintaining Russian gas transit after 2019 is also discussed in the context of planned construction of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline.

Vice President of the European Commission Maros Sefcovic said before that Ukraine is ready to offer a beneficial tariff to Gazprom for gas transit after 2020 but the delivery volume shall be "commercially feasible."

Chief Executive Officer of Gazprom Alexei Miller said before that the Russian gas holding is ready to hold talks with Naftogaz of Ukraine to keep the gas transit via Ukraine totaling 10-15 bln cubic meters per year if Ukraine proves feasibility of the new contract.