KIEV, Oct. 30 - Energy Company of Ukraine is planning to import 3.5 million tons of coal from Russia and Poland in 2008, company president Ihor Hluschenko said on Monday at a meeting of Fuel and Energy Ministry officials who were discussing fuel and energy preparations for the coming winter.

Talks need to be held this year on coal supplies to thermal power plants managed by Energy Company of Ukraine, he said. "A package of proposals with Russia needs to be drawn up before the New Year, and we need work on this source of supplies starting from today. When we appealed to our Russian colleagues this year, all [the coal] was already contracted out," he said.