RosUkrEnergo, the murky gas-trading vehicle half-owned by Gazprom, will continue to handle sales from Russia to Ukraine until a replacement, to be joint owned by Gazprom and Naftogaz, can be set up. First Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said that if Ukraine received gas not only from Russia but also from Central Asia, it would be necessary to keep the intermediary. Naftogaz has already paid off about $100 million of its gas import debts. GAIL Ltd., India’s biggest natural gas distributor, and Itera Group plan to set up ventures to sell fuel and build chemical plants in Russia. BP and Rosneft have begun an indefinite “lull” in drilling off Sakhalin island, as BP admitted the exploration program in the region “hasn’t been the huge success that some thought it might be”.