Pipeline accident near Kyiv not to affect gas transit to EU – operator

 It will take two or three days to repair the section of the KZU-1 trunk gas pipeline in Kyiv region, which has been damaged as a result of depressurization, Gas Transmission System Operator of Ukraine (GTSOU) said in a statement on Tuesday.

According to the statement, this line transports gas from extraction facilities in eastern Ukraine to underground storage sites in western Ukraine.

"There are no casualties. Consumers are being supplied with gas via other pipelines. The situation has absolutely no effect on gas transit to EU member states," the operator said.

The pipeline section was disconnected and the gas leak was contained as soon as dispatchers learned about the drop in pressure, the statement said. Gas was rapidly rerouted to other pipelines, and there were no disruptions in gas supply to consumers, it said.

Police are at work on the scene to establish causes of the accident. Once the investigative procedures are done, the company's repairmen will start to clean up the aftermath.

The Ukrainian State Emergency Service said earlier that the 1,020mm high-pressure trunk gas pipeline, which runs from Kyiv to western Ukraine, depressurized soon after midnight on September 15 near the town of Chabany in Kyiv-Sviatoshynsky district. Gas supply into the pipeline was stopped within an hour.

Source: www.en.interfax.com.ua