Russian natural gas volumes piped via Ukraine to Europe increased by 26 percent to 7.6 billion cubic meters in January 2019 compared to the same month last year, the Ukrainian gas transport monopoly Ukrtransgaz said on Tuesday.
The company also noted that Ukraine decreased its gas imports from Russia to 0.2 billion cubic meters in January 2019, a reduction of around 69 percent compared to January 2018.
Last year, Russia's Gazprom exported 194.4 billion cubic meters of natural gas to Europe from which about 30 percent was transferred via Ukraine, providing Kiev with a valuable stream of income.
Gazprom said earlier that it wants to bypass Ukraine for gas transit by building new pipelines from Russia to Europe.
Relations between the two countries have deteriorated since Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula in March 2014 and Ukraine halted its own imports of Russian gas in 2015.
Reporting By E. Gurkan Abay in Moscow
Writing By Murat Temizer
Anadolu Agency
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