The incompliance of the new GTS Code with the European standard legislation put at risk the reform of the Ukrainian gas market and the work of the GTS Operator

June 21, 2018, Kyiv - Ukrtransgaz once again calls attention of the members of the Verkhovna Rada relevant committees, the expert environment, representatives of the Regulator and all interested parties to the fact that further reformation of the gas market in Ukraine and the functioning of the independent operator of the GTS is impossible without the adoption of the Code of the Ukrainian gas transmission system, which will be harmonized with the relevant European standards.

The version of the GTS Code, which was approved by the National Energy and Utilities Regulatory Commission of Ukraine (NEURC) on December 27, 2017 and has to come into force on August 1, 2018, does not keep with the spirit of European legislation and rules of the Third Energy Package, nor the practices of European gas operators. This is testified by the lack of agreement on the current version of the Code by the European Energy Community. The Community Secretariat has repeatedly drawn the attention of the NEURC to the need to bring all amendments and proposals to line with the GTS Code (see the Letter of the Energy Community Secretariat dated November 3, 2017 and the Letter of the Energy Community Secretariat to the NEURC of November 15, 2017). Consequently, the Regulator's statement, with reference to the letters from the European Energy Community regarding alleged approval of the approved GTS Code, is erroneous. No confirmation of it is available on the official website of the Community –  www.energy-community.org.

It should be recalled that to comply with the requirements of Art. 33, Part 1 of the Law of Ukraine "On the Natural Gas Market", Ukrtransgaz has developed a draft GTS Code, which introduces daily balancing in the natural gas market. On September 28, 2017, the draft was sent to the NEURC for consideration and approval in conformity with the established procedure. However, the NEURC approved changes to the GTS Code different from those offered by Ukrtransgaz. The Code in the wording approved by the NEURC not only does not achieve the main goal of the reform, but also jeopardizes the functioning of the natural gas market in Ukraine.