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EurOil PIPELINE & TRANSPORT EurOil

Ukraine cuts gas transit by 45% in H1

UKRAINE UKRAINE’S newly formed gas grid operator during its first six months of operation. It began
GTSOU reported on July 24 that it had transited by using virtual reverse or backhauling, when
Russia has to pay 24.9bn cubic metres of gas during the first six gas sold to Ukraine by EU suppliers is simply
for 65 bcm of transit months of the year, marking a 45% decline from deducted from Russian transit volumes before
capacity this year the 2018 level. they leave the country. Previously this gas was
under ship-or-pay After lengthy negotiations, Ukraine reached pumped through Ukraine to its EU neighbours
requirements. a new five-year transit deal with Russia in Hungary, Poland and Slovakia and then pumped
December, under which Gazprom has to pay to back, driving up costs.
ship at least 65 bcm of gas this year, and then Ukraine took 7 bcm of gas from EU part-
only 40 bcm per year between 2021 and 2024. ners during the six-month period, up 24% year
In contrast, shipments last year amounted to on year. This included 1.7 bcm in backhauled
89.6 bcm. volumes.
Some of Russia’s deliveries to Europe were Around 3.7 bcm of Ukraine’s imports were
rerouted to other pipelines, including the Turk- injected into the country’s underground gas stor-
Stream launched in January. But Gazprom’s age facilities. These supplies were stored under
overall sales have also been much weaker this the customs warehouse regime, which allows
year, due to coronavirus (COVID-19) restric- foreign companies to store gas for up to 1,095
tions, warmer weather, high gas storage levels days without paying taxes or customs duties.
and a further surge in LNG imports. Some 6 bcm in total was injected into storage
Gazprom used only 77% of the Ukrainian during the period, which is 22% more than a
transit capacity it paid for under its ship-or- year earlier.
pay contract with GTSOU in the first half, the GTSOU also transmitted 9.8 bcm of domes-
Ukrainian operator said. tic gas production, down 7% y/y, and supplied
GTSOU pointed to several achievements 15.4 bcm of gas to Ukrainian consumers. ™

INVESTMENT

Romanian railway group takes

over bankrupt Rafo refinery

ROMANIA ROMANIAN railway transport group Gram- VFU Paşcani, Reloc Craiova, and Electropu-
pet, controlled by local businessman Gruia Sto- tere VFU Craiova factories, Grampet Group
Romanian railway ica, has taken over the bankrupt refinery Rafo also holds a significant share of the rolling stock
group Grampet has Onesti, for a price of $6mn plus VAT according repair market in Romania.
bought the bankrupt to official sources quoted by Profit.ro. Rafo refinery was once one of the most mod-
refinery. The refinery, the third-largest in Romania ern refineries in the country but it remained idle
with a capacity of 3.5mn tonnes a year, went for many years after a troubled privatisation and
bankrupt last September. It has not operated multiple frauds related to the sale.
since 2008 and reportedly accumulated losses of Rafo was privatised in 2001-2002 to a consor-
$400mn since then. Roserv Oil, part of Grampet tium of companies with unidentified sharehold-
Group, took over the refinery’s assets following ers, later found to be investors closely tied to the
an auction carried out by the court-appointed then ruling party PSDR, whose successor is the
liquidator CITR. The starting price announced Social Democratic Party (PSD). They paid $7mn
in September was €44.6mn, and the minimum for 60% of the refinery, given the refinery’s huge
accepted price at that time was $29.75mn. debt to the budget.
Grampet group plans to turn the refinery into Later, the investors were sold the refinery’s
a logistics centre for containers and oil products. debt to the budget, converted to equity at 10% of
Grampet will also assess the state of the equipment the nominal value in 2012.
left on the industrial site and plans to restart some of it The refinery’s shares changed hands several
in partnership with specialised companies. times during the next two years and have been
Founded almost 20 years ago, Grampet subject to many deals since then.
Group is one of the first multinationals founded A Bacau court approved the voluntary insol-
in Romania and the largest railway group and vency of the refinery in November 2016. The
private logistics operator in Southeast Europe. Its company declared insolvency at the request of
flagship company Grup Feroviar Român (GFR) the security firm that protects the company’s
is the largest private railway operator in Roma- properties and of the employees that had not
nia. Through the Reva Simeria, Electroputere been paid for months. ™

P14 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 30 30•July•2020