Mykhailo Gonchar reminded that last year "Naftogaz" "had run even ahead of the IMF," speaking about a possible rise in prices by as much as 30%. Then the IMF was talking about an increase of about 18%, and the government called even more modest figures.

"Now, when we return to this topic again, we are talking about changing the formula to take into account that the bulk of the gas we consume is still the gas of our own production. Therefore, we are talking about the price of gas in Ukraine and the IMF's demand that there should be parity with the price of imported gas, and the government agrees with it, but it is necessary to make an adjustment. That is, it should be borne in mind that 2/3 of the gas we consume is our internal gas, not imported", the expert noted.

Then, he said, the price increase should be lower.

"In my opinion, if the increase is up to 10%, it will be within acceptable frameworks. And when Naftogaz names numbers about 30%, it seems to me that this is an overreach. And, in the end, it will be bad for "Naftogaz" as well, as it will lead to non-payments", Gonchar added.

He also predicts that serious debate will resume over this issue, because, according to the expert, the problem is that there is no consolidated opinion on the Ukrainian side.

"Naftogaz" has its position, the government has its own one, while there should be a consolidated stance against the foreign donor ", - he stressed.

At the same time, Mykhailo Gonchar is convinced that the increase of gas prices in Ukraine is possible after the end of this heating season.

"There are actually two active months of the heating season left, in mid-April it ends. And I think the negotiations with the IMF will just continue. Moreover, the Fund is still unclear when the mission arrives in Ukraine. Therefore, I do not think that there will be an increase now. And the fact that it will be has its own logic, because we need to stimulate an increase in our own gas production, in order to eventually abandon imports at all", he added.