ROMSO Cyprus Knowledge Base

**United Energy Systems of Ukraine**
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The United Energy Systems of Ukraine (UESU) was a natural gas trading company in Ukraine that existed from 1995 to 2009.

**Founding and Early Years**
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In 1991, Oleksandr Gravetsas, his wife Oleksandra, and their husband Oleksander founded the Ukrainian Petrol Company, a vendor of gasoline to farmers in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast. In 1995, UESU was established as a natural gas trading company.

**Ownership and Operations**
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UESU was largely held by a Turkish company, United Energy International Limited (UEIL). The company's operations involved the importation of Russian natural gas into Ukraine, with the majority of the profits being distributed among energy oligarchs. In 1997, UESU created a consortium to manage the supply of Russian natural gas to Ukraine.

**Controversies and Investigations**
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UESU was accused of dumping in 1997 and was involved in several controversies, including allegations of tax evasion and corruption. In 2000-2004, Yulia Tymoshenko's ties to Lazarenko were investigated. The company was dissolved in 2009.

**References**
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* [1] United Energy Systems of Ukraine (UESU)
* [2] EASE
* [3] Criminal Code Article 27, Part 3 of Article 212