KYIV, Oct 29 – The increase in the price of natural gas for households will help reform Ukraine's energy sector, U.S. Special Representative for Ukraine Negotiations Kurt Volker has said in an interview with Interfax-Ukraine.

KIEV, Oct. 27 – The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development is mulling the provision of a $37 million loan to MV Cargo LLC to finance the construction of a grain terminal at Yuzhny port (Odessa region).

KIEV, Oct. 28 - The High Court of Justice of England and Wales has ratified a deal on restructuring $200 million eurobonds of Avangard agricultural holding maturing on October 29, 2015, the company told Interfax-Ukraine.

KIEV, Oct. 28 – Members of Parliament have proposed the reduction of value-added tax (VAT) from 20% to 15% and the introduction of the automatic tax refund for all amounts confirmed by the electronic VAT administration system.

The provision is contained in the draft tax reform registered in the parliament by 114 deputies on October 26.

KIEV, Oct. 26 – Ukraine's total state direct and guaranteed debt expanded by 0.8%, or $635.3 million, in September, to $61.54 billion, the Finance Ministry reported on Friday.

KIEV, Oct. 29 – The Economic Development and Trade Ministry has proposed doubling the fully paid import duties for almost 7,400 subcategories of goods, which is 68% of the entire range of goods.

KIEV, Oct. 29 – Ukrhydroenergo has started adding water to the upper reservoir of the Dnistrovska hydroelectric pumped storage power plant, and Ukrenergo has connected the 330 kV Dnistrovska hydroelectric pumped storage power plant-Bar substation power line.

KIEV, Oct. 29 – The rubber objects in oil that caused the temporarily failure of oil meters on the Slovak and Hungarian sections of the Druzhba pipeline could not have originated in Ukraine, Ukrtransnafta, the operator of Ukraine's oil transport system, said.

The company said that after examinations by an international commission, the rubber objects were classified as technological.

KIEV, Oct. 29 – At a meeting of holders of Ukrgasbank's A and C Series bonds worth UAH 47.5 million creditors confirmed that the terms of restructuring proposed by the bank are unacceptable.

"As a whole, not taking into account that Ukreximbank and Oschadbank are linked to the bank in shareholders' capital and that a consultant on the bank's restructuring is ING Bank, which took part in the meeting, independent investors hold over 70% of the bank's A and C Series bonds," reads a report of Concorde Capital.

KIEV, Oct. 29 - Ukraine’s Odessa-Brody oil pipeline, which moves Russian crude for export via a Black Sea oil terminal near Odessa, was shut down late Wednesday after an accident causing oil leakage, UkrTransNafta, the state oil shipper, said Thursday.

The oil pipeline was apparently ripped through near the village of Semeno-Karpivka in the Odessa region, with an oil spill covering the area of about one hectare, a company official said.