Energy professional Nikolay Zlochevsky heads one of the largest independent gas producers in Ukraine, Burisma Group. A passionate advocate of his home country, Nikolay Zlochevsky applauds the country’s move toward natural gas self-sufficiency.
Ukraine seeks to achieve natural gas self-sufficiency by 2020. To achieve this, the country is following a two-pronged approach that promotes development in the natural gas sector while increasing energy utilization efficiency.
In 2017, Ukraine consumed 32.2 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas. Only 20.8 bcm was produced locally. The rest was imported. Ukraine hopes to increase production to 27 bcm and pair that with improved energy efficiency to meet its local demand.
The capacity to produce more gas is there. Ukraine has the third largest confirmed natural gas reserves in Europe, second only to Russia and Norway. Though some reports indicate the country’s gas reserves are actually way higher. What’s more, the Eastern European country extracts only a fraction of its reserves annually, about 2 percent, compared to other countries like Norway which extracts 6.5 percent, the UK (17 percent), and the Netherlands (5 percent).
Already, the country has passed production-friendly reforms like reducing tax rates and deregulating the gas sector. If the government keeps promoting production and energy efficiency, it is possible for Ukraine to not only meet its local demand but also become a gas exporter.