MOSCOW, April 24. /TASS/. The transfer of control over the Ukrainian gas transportation system (GTS) to the US depends on the political will of both countries. The commercial benefit of such a project for American investors is questionable due to the severe deterioration of the gas pipelines and the potentially small volumes of Russian gas pumped to Europe, said Alexey Belogoryev, research director at the Institute of Energy and Finance.
"If there is political will from [US President Donald] Trump, then perhaps American investors can be attracted to this project. But from the point of view of commercial benefit, all this looks very questionable. This may be a political decision, but the economic attractiveness of the Ukrainian gas transportation system is currently, to put it mildly, low. Moreover, the infrastructure is old and requires upgrade," the expert said in an interview with TASS.
In such a scenario, the GTS may remain the property of Ukraine, and the management functions should be transferred to an American company.
Earlier, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov, answering a question from the French magazine Le Point about whether the possible transfer of control over the gas pipeline in Ukraine to the United States would be beneficial to Russia, said that Russia is ready to discuss gas transit through Ukraine to Europe regardless of whether the gas pipeline in this country has a new owner.
The creation of an international consortium for the management and upgrade of Ukrainian gas pipelines with the participation of American companies was discussed back in the 2000s. Then the negotiations failed due to the political position of the Ukrainian authorities, which has only become tougher in recent years, Belogoryev noted. Foreign investors may enter this project if Ukraine is ready to abandon its tough position on energy sovereignty in terms of ownership of infrastructure.
"Another question is, what is the US' interest in it? Because the volumes of pumping have decreased several times since the 2000s. Even if there is a warming in relations between Russia and the EU, and pipeline exports are partially restored, one can still talk about deliveries of 30-40 billion cubic meters per year, while in the 2000s it was an average of 120 billion cubic meters. These are relatively small volumes from the point of view of investors' interests," the expert added.
In addition, suppliers and consumers must provide very clear long-term guarantees for the purchase of gas going along this route. Russia, as a supplier, can provide such guarantees if there is demand, but Belogoryev has doubts about European countries.
"Slovakia and Hungary can potentially do this, but, for example, Austria, Italy or the Czech Republic are unlikely to take on such political and economic obligations. After all, Ukrainian transit has shown its unreliability precisely from the point of view of Ukraine's position, and now the attitude towards it is quite complicated," the expert concluded.
On Ukrainian transit
According to Reuters, the draft agreement on Ukrainian mineral resources prepared by the United States contains a requirement to transfer control over the pipeline, which runs through Ukraine to Europe, to an American government corporation.
The agreement on the transit of Russian gas through Ukraine to Europe expired on January 1, 2025. It provided for the pumping of 40 billion cubic meters annually. However, Ukraine's refusal to extend the agreement deprived Gazprom of the technical and legal opportunity to supply gas via this route, as a result of which deliveries were stopped.