KIEV, March 14 - Russia's biggest gas company is really doubling down on its proposed Nord Stream II pipeline even as political pressure and new realities of the global energy markets weigh against it, Forbes said Tuesday.

KIEV, March 12 – The entry into force of the law introducing a ban on smoking in Ukrainian restaurants has led to a reduction in the number of visitors by 15-20%, according to Yevhen Rezuyev, director general of the Mafia Italian and Japanese cuisine restaurant chain.

KIEV, March 13 – The territorial state labor inspectorate in Kiev region, after checking complaints from the trade unions of AeroSvit Airline, in 2012 held the head of the airline administratively liable for six labor law violations, the Prosecutor General's Office in Kiev region reported.

KIEV, March 13 – The European Energy Community is not an end in itself for Ukraine, but the economic feasibility of international unions is important to Kiev, Regions Party MP Oleh Zarubinsky said.

ODESSA, March 13 – A large oil spill has been discovered near the coastline in Ukraine's Odessa region.

The Odessa region Prosecutor's Office told an Interfax-Ukraine reporter that the area of the oil spill is more than 840,000 square meters.

KIEV, March 14 – A mission of the International Monetary Fund will work in Ukraine from March 27 until April 10, the IMF Resident Representative Office in Kiev reported.

An IMF mission last visited Kiev January 29 through February 12 to discuss economic policies that could be supported by the IMF with the stand-by agreement.

KIEV, March 14 – The European Investment Bank plans to provide a government secured loan to Ukraine's State Railway Administration of Ukraine (Ukrzaliznytsia) with the maximum repayment term to realize a project on the construction of the new Beskydsky railway tunnel, Ukrzaliznytsia reported.

KIEV, March 14 - The management of Kyivenergo, the Ukrainian capital's power company, and experts from Germany's RWE Power International have discussed the possibility of working together in the construction of heat-generating facilities fueled by alternative sources of energy, particularly biomass, Kyivenergo announced.

KIEV, March 12 - A tripartite consortium of Ukraine, Russia and the European Union to modernize Ukrainian gas pipelines would be better than a bilateral project without Europe, Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council Secretary Andriy Kliuyev answered an Investgazeta question on Monday.

KIEV, March 13 – Ukraine's largest vertically integrated private energy holding, DTEK, is to acquire a state-owned 25% stake in energy generating company Dniproenergo for UAH 1,179,700,000.