KIEV, January 31 (RIA Novosti) - Ukraine is to keep its gas pipelines under state ownership following the setting up of a new joint venture to distribute gas supplies from Russia in the country, the Ukrainian energy minister said Tuesday.
The charter of the new joint venture - to be set up by Ukraine's national gas firm Naftogaz and gas supply company RosUkrEnergo - does not envision the transfer of the gas transport system into the venture's ownership, Ivan Plachkov said.
RosUkrEnergo, a Swiss-based company that transports Central Asian natural gas to Ukraine via Russia, is half owned by Gazprom subsidiary Gazprombank. The other half is held by Austrian bank Raiffeisen.
Plachkov told journalists that the new venture would handle natural gas supplies to, and probably sales in, Ukraine.
"We will continue work after we receive the conclusion of the Ukrainian Antimonopoly Committee," the minister said.
