OREANDA-NEWS  On 20 February was announced, that cutting-off the heat in institutions and houses in the regions occurs through Teplocomunenergo's (heat community energy company) fault that owes large sums for gas. Minister of Housing and Communal Service Oleksiy Kucherenko stated at a press conference in the Cabinet of Ministers.

“Nobody cut off the heat. The companies that run into debt for gas cut off from gas. And do not speculate in this issue. The teplocomunenergo companies that had failed to pay for gas in time, had piled up debts, are not supplied with the gas,” the Minister noted.

According to him, at the beginning of year, for example, the gas debt of the TCE companies increased by 1.8bn hryvnias. The level of population’s payments decreased. In Crimea the heat energy payments by the population made up – 42%, by the budget institutions – 56% and only 18mln hryvnias paid for gas instead of 87mln hryvnias.  In Ivano-Frankivsk 30mln hryvnias for gas was charged and only 9mln hryvnias was paid.

“I state with disturbance that the population decided to experiment, what if we do not pay. If we want to experiment on it – we will face a big problem,” the Minister said and urged “the respected, honest Ukrainians to pay in time”.

At the same time Oleksiy Kucherenko promised, in case of the inefficient service, the housing inspection would help in re-calculation of payments.

The Minister stressed that the level of payments on the part of the population and TCE companies can influence the Naftogaz ability to pay for the Russian gas.

“We owe the Russian Federation for gas and we face the question, how to pay, how to clear this debt. This is the problem of national security and independence of the country,” the Minister noted.