On January 1, 2025, the provisions of the law on state regulation of production and circulation of ethyl alcohol, alcohol distillates, bioethanol, alcoholic beverages, tobacco products, tobacco raw materials, liquids used in electronic cigarettes and fuel came into force in Ukraine, the State Customs Service (SCS) reported.
According to the amendments provided for by Law No. 3817-IX, the placement of these goods in certain customs regimes is allowed only if they have the relevant valid licenses or in storage facilities included in the register of the State Tax Service.
The State Customs Service reminded companies transporting ethyl alcohol, alcohol distillates, bioethanol, alcoholic beverages, tobacco products, tobacco raw materials, liquids used in electronic cigarettes, and fuel across the customs border of Ukraine to take this information into account during the next customs clearance of exported goods.
According to the results of 2024, the volume of natural gas production in Ukraine is estimated at 19.1 billion cubic meters, which is 400 million cubic meters more than in 2023 (18.7 billion cubic meters) and 600 million cubic meters more than in 2022 (18.5 billion cubic meters), said Artem Petrenko, Executive Director of the Association of Gas Producers of Ukraine (AGPU).
“According to preliminary estimates of our association, this year gas production in Ukraine will amount to about 19.1 billion cubic meters. Compared to 2023, we see an increase of more than 400 million cubic meters,” he said during an online meeting on the results of the year and prospects for the development of the energy sector of Ukraine at Energy Club on December 30.
According to the Executive Director, the positive trend of gas production growth in 2024 was ensured by both state-owned JSC Ukrgasvydobuvannya and PJSC Ukrnafta and private sector companies.
“Since August, the negative trend in private companies has been broken, and we have been recording an increase in gas production by private companies since August, and in five months they have managed to increase average daily gas production by more than 25%,” Petrenko said.
Also, according to preliminary data of the AGCU, more than 140 wells were drilled in Ukraine in 2024.
“This actually repeats the record-breaking year of 2023, when more than 150 wells were drilled. In total, over almost three years of full-scale invasion, gas producers have drilled more than 360 new wells,” the expert added.
According to him, since 2018, when the state provided incentives for drilling to Ukrainian gas producers, state and private companies have started drilling more than 720 wells in the country.
According to Petrenko, amid the ban on gas exports, Naftogaz of Ukraine continues to transparently buy gas on the Ukrainian Energy Exchange (UEEX) not only from producers but also from all market participants willing to sell gas on Naftogaz’s terms. According to the AGCU, since 2023, Naftogaz has purchased almost 2 billion cubic meters of gas at the UEEX.
“Under the conditions of closed exports, this is the only effective mechanism of cooperation between Naftogaz and participants, which is an incentive for private companies to increase gas production,” he emphasized.
At the same time, the Executive Director believes that in 2025, a negative factor for Ukrainian gas production will be the level of gas transmission tariffs, which the National Energy and Utilities Regulatory Commission (NEURC) increased for GTS Operator of Ukraine LLC by more than 4.5 times for internal entry points to the GTS starting January 1.
“This will affect not only state-owned companies but also private ones, as under the moratorium on gas price increases, it will reduce the investment opportunities of companies that they could direct to increase Ukrainian gas production,” Petrenko said.
As reported, gas transportation tariffs for internal entry points to the Ukrainian gas transmission system will increase 4.6 times from UAH 101.93 per 1 thousand cubic meters per day to UAH 464.37 per 1 thousand cubic meters per day starting January 1, 2025, and 4 times for external entry points, from UAH 124.16 per 1 thousand cubic meters per day to UAH 501.97 per 1 thousand cubic meters per day.
The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has approved the document “On the Establishment of the Ukrainian Part of the Ukrainian-Japanese Joint Committee for the Implementation of the Joint Crediting Mechanism,” the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine reported.
Earlier, Ukraine joined Japan’s Joint Crediting Mechanism (JCM). The goal of the program is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by introducing the world’s leading technologies for decarbonizing various sectors of the economy through investments by Japanese organizations. Ukraine and Japan signed a memorandum of cooperation under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement earlier this year.
“This decision is important for achieving our climate goals through joint lending instruments. Japan is a promising partner on this path. Through joint lending, we will be able to attract Japanese technologies and innovative developments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This includes the implementation of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Paris Agreement, and the green recovery of Ukraine according to the latest practices,” Minister Svitlana Hrynchuk said in a statement on the Telegram channel on Tuesday.
It is noted that the next step will be to approve the composition of the committee and its regulations. The committee is created to coordinate efforts to strengthen bilateral cooperation in the fight against climate change. For its part, Japan has already completed all the preparatory steps to launch cooperation.
The JCM reportedly allows Japanese organizations to invest in decarbonization projects in partner countries. The reduced greenhouse gas emissions resulting from such projects are partly credited as Japan’s contribution to its own emission reduction targets and partly in the country where the project was implemented. Today, the JCM mechanism operates in 29 countries.
According to Hrynchuk, for Ukraine, this means access to Japanese technologies – some of the best in the world – and guaranteed investments for green recovery. This will be a tangible support in overcoming the consequences of Russian armed aggression.
In the afternoon of January 1 in most western regions of Ukraine, wind gusts of 15-20 m/s (I level of danger, yellow), warns the Ukrainian Hydrometeorological and Meteorological Center.
It is noted that weather conditions may lead to complications in the work of energy, construction, utility companies and traffic.
U.S. oil exports to China almost halved in 2024, Bloomberg reports, citing Kpler data. The United States exported 81.1 million barrels of oil to China this year, which is 46% lower than the previous year (150.6 million barrels). Thus, China has dropped to sixth place among the largest buyers of US oil from second.
Chinese demand for oil is declining amid a slowdown in the country’s economic growth, the proliferation of electric vehicles and increased LNG consumption. The total volume of oil imports to China this year decreased by 7.2%. At the same time, the share of Russia, Iran, and Venezuela in maritime supplies rose to 26% from 24% a year earlier, with the Middle East accounting for about 60%.
At the same time, Europe has remained the main buyer of American oil at the regional level for three years.
The Netherlands continues to be the leader, importing 194.4 million barrels of oil from the United States in 2024. The second place is taken by South Korea (165.5 million barrels), which is trying to compensate for the decline in supplies from Kazakhstan, which has begun to cooperate more actively with Italy.
This year, the United Kingdom is in third place (11.8 million barrels), Canada is in fourth place (102.3 million barrels), and Spain is in fifth place (87.3 million barrels). The seventh place is taken by France (81.3 million barrels), and the eighth – by Taiwan (80.4 million barrels).
