UKRAINE'S GAS PRICES UP

PLATTS - Ukraine's wholesale LPG prices rose about 15% over the weekend after Kazakhstan-based Tengizchevroil (TCO) suspended supplies to the country, industry sources said Tuesday.

TCO, which accounted for 19% of Ukrainian LPG imports in April, suspended supplies on Friday to comply with Russia's ban on petroleum exports to Ukraine starting June 1, sources said.

The LPG price quoted by Geo Alliance, a local wholesale trader, rose to Hryvnia 21,700/mt on Monday, up from Hryvnia 18,790/mt on May 22, according to energy consultancy A-95.

Regal Petroleum, an oil company, quoted its LPG prices at Hryvnia 21,000/mt in an auction on Monday, up from Hryvnia 18,820/mt on May 22, according to the consultancy.

"They still do not have permission from Russia to cross the border [after June 1] so the Kazakh company has decided to wait," a source at a major Ukrainian trading company said Tuesday. "No one knows exactly what's going to happen in June."

TCO is the first Kazakh company to suspend supplies, but a number of smaller Kazakh companies will probably follow suit, the sources said.

TCO delivered 21,500 mt of LPG to Ukraine in April, A-95 said. The company supplied 208,300 mt of LPG to Ukraine in 2018, 16% of total imports, it said.

Other smaller Kazakh companies delivered a total of 48,700 mt of LPG to Ukraine in 2018, according to A-95.

Russia last month banned crude oil exports as well as a number of oil products to Ukraine on June 1. The list of banned products includes crude oil, ethylene, propylene, bitumen, butadiene, coke, fuel oil, ethane, butane and isobutane, but excludes gasoline and diesel.

Exports of naphtha, gasoline, diesel and LPG will be allowed subject to permission from Russia's economy ministry.

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