Ukraine is utilizing 100% of its existing capacity for importing natural gas, Serhiy Makohon, the head of Gas Transportation System Operator of Ukraine, has said.
“The day has come! Imports of gas reached 66.3 million cubic meters, which represents 100% of our technical capacity. A landmark event,” Makohon wrote on Facebook.
The GTS’ throughput capacity on Ukraine’s border is 42.5 mcm/day from Slovakia, 19.5 mcm/day from Hungary, and 4.3 mcm/day from Poland.
Ukraine is planning to start the 2019/2020 heating season with 20 billion cubic meters of gas in its underground storage facilities, as it fears that Russia’s Gazprom will stop transporting gas through its territory after this year.
As of the morning of July 20, some 15.018 bcm was in underground storage, CEO of Naftogaz Ukrainy Andriy Kobolev said on Facebook earlier on Monday.
Between July 1 and July 20, some 1.473 bcm was pumped in, or 73.7 mcm per day. In June, 71.9 mcm/day was pumped in, and 62.9 mcm/day in May.
Russia’s Gazprom has boosted gas transit to the European Union through the territory of Ukraine by 25%, by 60 million cubic meters per day, JSC Ukrtransgaz has reported.
This is related to a halt for repairing two lines of Nord Stream.
Ukraine from April 4 to July 13, 2019, increased its natural gas reserves in underground storage facilities (USF) by 66%, or 5.768 billion cubic meters (bcm), to 14.514 bcm, according to JSC Ukrtransgaz.
According to the calculations of the Interfax-Ukraine agency, this volume exceeds the stocks reported on July 13, 2018, by 22.2% and on July 13, 2017, by 18.9%.
The country’s gas reserves on July 1-13 increased by 969.38 million cubic meters (mcm), which was 74.6 mcm daily on the average, whereas it was 71.9 mcm per day in June, 62.9 mcm per day in May.
Ukraine’s gas reserves in the USFs on July 13, 2019, increased by 69.62 million cubic meters (mcm) when imports totaled 61.93 mcm and domestic production was 54.83 mcm.
NJSC Naftogaz Ukrainy will reduce the price of natural gas for the population by 11.7% (by UAH 648) compared to the June price, to UAH 4,905 for 1,000 cubic meters (excluding VAT, shipping costs and supplier margins), the press service of the company has said. Naftogaz focused on the fact that the final price for consumers will depend on the tariff for gas distribution.
As reported, according to government resolution No. 485 of June 5, 2019, from June Naftogaz is obliged to sell gas to the population at the minimum price of the four market values: the average price of imports according to the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade (UAH 5,161), the company’s price for industry (UAH 5,017), the average weighted price on the Ukrainian Energy Exchange (UAH 4,905), and public service obligations according to resolution No. 867 (the price is calculated in the amount of UAH 7,185).
The Greek energy company Flow Energy & Environmental Operations S.A. is interested in Ukrainian electronic oil and gas auctions and is ready to invest up to EUR 1.2 million in hydrocarbon deposits, Ukraine’s State Service of Geology and Subsoil has reported.
According to the service, the energy company got acquainted with the primary and secondary geological information on five fields, auctions for which are scheduled for June 18.
“Our company intends to take part in the next auction. Despite the fact that we are a small company, we are interested in five oil and gas deposits with a total cost of more than EUR 1 million. I hope that this is only the beginning and we will be active participants in the Ukrainian energy market,” the press service said citing the president of the Greek company, Tereza Fokianou.
The service noted the low level of participation of foreign companies in oil and gas auctions, but said they were working to attract foreign investors.
The interdepartmental commission organizing and implementing the product sharing agreements (PSA) has received a bid from Poland’s Unimot seeking to participate in a tender to develop the Ivanivske field (Kharkiv region) under PSA, Executive Director of the Association of Gas Producers Roman Opimakh has said on his Facebook page.
“Today [on June 6], the 14th company was registered, which submitted an application for participation in the tender for entering into a PSA for the Ivanivske field. It became the third candidate for this lot, which gives the right to explore and produce fossil fuel in Kharkiv region. This is the Polish concern Unimot selling automotive fuels and such commodities as gas and electricity,” he wrote.
Opimakh said that the procedure of the tender allows the acceptance of applications for participation sent by mail subject to the availability of a mail stamp confirming the sending of the main meeting the deadline – May 28.
He also said that at present, the company has no experience in exploration and production, however, Opimakh said that joint development with some specialized company is not ruled out.
Unimot S.A is an energy company which activities include the import and sale of petroleum products, liquefied natural gas and electricity.
Previously, the company has repeatedly reported about entering the Ukrainian fuel market with the AVIA network of gas stations.
