KIEV, June 25. /TASS/. Ukraine may fall short of funds for gas purchase, if it cuts Europe-bound Russian gas transit across its territory, Public Security Fund expert Yuri Gavrilechko said on Thursday.

Ukrainian gas transportation operator Ukrtransgaz Head Igor Prokopiv said on Thursday he expected Russian natural gas transit across Ukraine to decrease to 51 billion cubic meters from 62 billion cubic meters this year.

"The pumping of 50 billion cubic meters of gas means that Naftogaz [national energy company] will get $1.5 billion for transit at best. If two more stretches of the Nord Stream gas pipeline [along the Baltic Sea bed to Germany] are built by 2019 and the Turkish Stream gas pipeline comes into operation, no more than 30 billion cubic meters of natural gas will be pumped across the Ukrainian gas transportation system. This amount will allow Naftogaz to earn only $1 billion, which is equal to about 4 billion cubic meters of gas at current prices," the expert said.

In case of such a significant fall in transit, "it is absolutely unclear where to find money for gas purchase in three years’ time," the expert said.

‘We’ll hardly have time to repay the loans we have taken out while Europe will not support us at its expense," Gavrilechko said.