OREANDA-NEWS Moscow plans to renegotiate a gas transit deal with the European Union for a short time in order to gain time to complete the construction of pipelines bypassing Ukraine, Reuters reports, citing four sources. The gas transit agreement from Russia through Ukraine expires at the end of 2019.

One of the sources pointed out that for the Russian side it would be suitable to extend the transaction for one year, while Ukraine intends to seek a ten-year contract on favorable terms. The European Union supports the position of Kiev in these negotiations, said the publication. Gazprom and the Ministry of Energy of Russia declined to comment on this information to the agency.

Earlier it was reported that Ukraine continues to look for a replacement for Russian gas and is exploring the possibility of obtaining gas bypassing the Russian Federation.

Naftogaz Ukrainy is the state-owned company of Ukraine for the extraction, transportation and processing of oil and natural gas.