MOSCOW, Aug. 30 (UPI) -- Merging a national energy company in Ukraine with Russian gas monopoly Gazprom would ensure a reliable source of gas for Ukrainian households, an official said.
Ukrainian Energy Minister Yury Boiko met Friday in Moscow with Gazprom chief Alexei Miller.
Gazprom has tried to form a joint venture with Naftogaz since Kiev secured a gas discount from the gas monopoly in April.
Miller said the deal would be a way for Ukrainian consumers to get a cheaper and more reliable source of natural gas, the National News Agency of Ukraine reports.
"This could be a very important factor of predictability, reliability (and) stability of gas supplies for Ukrainian households," said Miller.
The Ukrainian government brokered the gas discount in exchange for an extended lease for the Russian Black Sea fleet in Crimea.
Around 80 percent of all Russian gas bound for European markets heads through Soviet-era pipelines in Ukraine.
Kiev, battered by the global economic downturn, is under pressure by international lenders to overhaul its energy sector in exchange for a series of financial bailouts.
Gazprom cut gas supplies to Ukraine in 2009 because Kiev was unable to pay its bills.
