Chernyshov: Ukrainian market needs liberalization to grow energy production

To stimulate business and develop production capacity, the Ukrainian energy market needs to be liberalized wherever possible.

This opinion was expressed by Oleksii Chernyshov, Chairman of the Board of Naftogaz of Ukraine, during a speech at the International Conference on the Restoration of Ukraine in Berlin, a Ukrinform correspondent reports.

"After this winter, we will need to have more production capacity. And in this regard, we use the word “market”. Let business produce more energy - but in order to do this, we need to liberalize the market,” Chernyshov said.

Read also: Ukraine’s steel production up by almost a third

He informed the conference participants that Naftogaz plans to increase gas production. “We produce and consume a lot (of gas - ed.) without importing it from Europe,” Chernyshov said.

In addition, he said, foreign partners pumped 2.5 billion cubic meters of gas into Ukrainian gas storage facilities last year. This year, despite Russian missile attacks on the gas infrastructure, gas pumping continues.

As reported, in January-May, Naftogaz Group launched 36 new wells, 11 of which have a daily flow rate of more than 100 thousand cubic meters of gas.