Russia Confirms Receiving First Tranche of Ukraine Gas Debt Payment

Russian gas giant Gazprpom on Wednesday confirmed receiving the first tranche of payment for past deliveries from Ukraine's Naftogaz. 

The payment opens the way for resumption of Russian gas supplies to Ukraine under an agreement between Moscow and Kiev reached last week in Brussels.

"Gazprom has received from banks a confirmation of transfer of USD 1.45B from Naftogaz," Gazprom spokesman Sergey Kupriyanov told reporters. 

Naftogaz announced the transfer of USD 1.45 B to Gazprom on Tuesday. The sum is nearly half of the USD 3.1B debt owed to Gazprom by Naftogaz. The remainder should be paid by end-2014.

A Russian government decision based on last week's agreement stipulates that Naftogaz will pay USD 378 per 1000 cubic meters of gas until the end of the year and USD 365 per 1000 cubic meters until the end of March 2015.

Ukraine plans to buy four billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas by end-2014 under the winter gas package but according to Gazprom CEO Aleksey Miller, Kiev has informally suggested on the sidelines of negotiations in Brussels it may purchase up to seven bcm.