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Ukrtransgaz is also planning to introduce short-haul services for European companies looking to inject gas into Ukraine's storage facilities.
Ukrainian gas companies are preparing to test gas exports to central Europe after the National Energy and Utilities Regulation Commission (NEURC) of Ukraine more than halved entry-exit tariffs for the state-run gas transport system operator Ukrtransgaz.
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"Several companies will be looking to export volume to Hungary and Slovakia to test the readiness of the transmission system operator Ukrtransgaz and the customs regimes to new types of operations," the world's largest petrochemical market information provider ICIS reported, referring to a source close to discussions.
"The Ukrainian grid operator Ukrtransgaz is also in talks with its Polish counterpart GAZ-SYSTEM to allow backhaul flows on the Hermanowicze interconnector and Ukrainian gas companies could equally export to Romania if the country's grid operator Transgaz agreed to create a new interconnection point," it said.
According to the ICIS, Ukrtransgaz is planning to introduce short-haul services for European companies looking to inject gas into Ukraine's storage facilities, taking advantage of the cheaper transport tariffs, which will help develop Ukraine's export potential.
As UNIAN reported earlier, the National Energy and Utilities Regulation Commission on December 21, 2018, reduced tariffs for Ukrtransgaz for natural gas transportation services by half.
UNIAN memo. Ukraine's gas transmission system (GTS) is one of the world's largest and the second in Europe. Ukrtransgaz GTS consists of trunk gas pipelines that are 37,930 kilometers long.
The country's GTS capacity is 145 billion cubic meters per year.
Ukrtransgaz operates 12 underground gas storages (USFs) with a total storage capacity of about 31 bcm. The USFs are an integral part of Ukraine's gas supply system and gas transit through its territory. The company is also the operator of trunk gas pipelines carrying gas from Russia to the EU. Ukrtransgaz is wholly owned by NJSC Naftogaz of Ukraine.