Summary

Slovakia, as the country that will be hardest hit by an end to transit, is the most active player in trying to avoid this outcome, though success is still far from certain.

by: NGW

Ukraine may stop transiting Russian natural gas to Europe in two weeks’ time, bringing an end to a key role in regional energy trade that the country has held for almost half a century. While this cessation is not yet a foregone conclusion, continuing transit beyond December 31 relies on several critical success factors. And judging by the climb in European gas prices over recent months, it is clear that this is what the market expects to happen.
Slovakia, as the country that will be hardest hit by an end to transit, is the most active player in trying to avoid this outcome. The country’s main gas company SPP announced on December 17 that it had signed a declaration on continued gas transit with Slovakian pipeline operator Eustream, Hungary’s MVM and MOL and several other industry groups from…