US will help Poland, Ukraine disconnect from Russian gas

WARSAW, Sept 01 (Reuters): The United States (US), Poland and Ukraine agreed on Saturday to enhance cooperation over secure gas supplies in the region which still relies on Russia.

"We're helping Poland to reduce its dependence on Russian gas," US Energy Secretary Rick Perry told a news conference in Warsaw after meeting officials from Poland and Ukraine.

The Polish government official responsible for energy infrastructure, Piotr Naimski, said Poland, which has increased purchases of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the United States in recent years, would be able to send six billion cubic meters of gas to Ukraine starting from 2021 compared to the current capability of 1.5 bcm.

"We will take every effort to diversify gas supplies to Ukraine, which is now completely dependent on Russian deliveries," Naimski told the same conference.

Perry, Naimski and Ukraine's Secretary of National Security Oleksandr Danylyuk signed a memorandum of understanding to enhance security of gas supplies in the region via LNG supplies from the US through Poland's and Ukraine's infrastructure which still has to be expanded.

Under a policy it calls energy dominance, the administration of President Donald Trump, who canceled his trip to Warsaw earlier this week, is seeking to slash domestic regulations on energy production to boost oil and gas exports to allies and trade partners.

It is seeking to offer Europe alternative sources of gas to fuel sent via pipeline from Russia, which is generally cheaper than US LNG, but has not always been reliable with Russia at times stopping deliveries to Ukraine and parts of Europe during pricing disputes.