KIEV, July 17 - Caspian Sea crude oil shipments to the European Union via Ukraine will face delays now that Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko has unexpectedly banned a state company from signing oil contracts, a top official said Thursday.

Bohdan Sokolovskiy, President Viktor Yushchenko’s special envoy on the energy security, said the order was issued Wednesday, hours before two oil refineries and the oil shipper were supposed to sign the contracts.