Expert says Ukraine's gas reserves enough for 22 years of extraction

"There are 402 hydrocarbon deposits in Ukraine... including 269 deposits being in commercial development. Ukraine's state balance of mineral resources takes into account the extracted natural gas reserves at 905.6 bcm (68.9% of all reserves have been extracted) in the said 402 deposits... Active mining operations in Ukraine show that only half of these reserves can be extracted [452.8 bcm of gas], which is enough for 22 years of production," Klymovych wrote in his article for the official government newspaper Uriadovy Kurier.

Read alsoUkrgazvydobuvannia plans to resume gas exploration in western UkraineHe therefore stressed the need for large-scale geological exploration in Ukraine in areas with resources of 5.6 trillion cubic meters of gas, as well as exploration of unconventional gas deposits.

As UNIAN reported earlier, Ukraine increased natural gas production in 2017 by 3.1% from 2016, to 20.8 bcm.

The state-owned Ukrgazvydobuvannia in 2017 boosted natural gas output by 4.8% to 15.3 bcm.

At present, the company is implementing the 20/20 program, which envisages the increase in gas production to 20 bcm per year by 2020. The program's cost is estimated at UAH 110 billion, or $3.85 billion.

UNIAN memo. National Joint-Stock Company Nadra Ukrayny is a major geological exploration company in Ukraine. It owns 20 special permits to use oil and gas resource (47 million tonnes of conventional fuel), 120 wells for restoration, 16 areas for priority drilling operations for oil and gas, and 40 sites for seismic research. In addition, the company has developed 23 business projects related to prospective subsoil sites.

Nadra Ukrayny consists of 13 exploration and specialized enterprises.

Ukraine's State Service of Geology and Mineral Resources owns a 100% stake in the company.