Ukraine's PM announces new model of GTS operation after transit is stopped
Photo: Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal (Vitalii Nosach, RBC-Ukraine)
Ukraine plans to develop the concept of a European gas safe. Energy remains at the center of attention this year, says Ukraine's Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal.
“The Ukrainian gas transportation system is now operating without Russian gas transit, and it is important to implement a new model of its operation this year. We will pay special attention to the development of the concept "Ukraine is the gas safe of Europe,” he said.
According to him, energy remains one of the biggest challenges for this year.
“Two key tasks for this year are the restoration and protection of energy facilities. At the same time, we will continue to develop distributed generation and build infrastructure to be able to import more electricity from Europe,” the Prime Minister said.
End of transit and Ukraine's storage facilities
Naftogaz's five-year transit contract with Gazprom expired on January 1, 2025. Ukraine turned off the gas valve, depriving Moscow of about $5-7 billion in revenue per year.
Before this, Ukrtransgaz and the Ukrainian Gas Transmission System Operator conducted stress tests to assess the reliability of the gas transportation system and underground storage facilities to operate under Russian shelling and stop Russian gas transit.
According to Ukraine's Energy Minister German Galushchenko, all the necessary work to prepare the system has been done by the Gas Transmission System Operator of Ukraine, and Ukraine is ready to operate the gas system without Russian gas transit.
Ukraine's underground gas storage facilities are the largest in Europe, with a capacity of over 31 billion cubic meters. They are located at a depth of 400 meters to 2 kilometers, so it is completely safe to store gas. Ukraine is ready to provide partners with about 10 billion cubic meters.
Foreign traders store gas in Ukraine's underground storage facilities. However, in 2024, this volume decreased due to concerns after Russian missile attacks on gas infrastructure.
