Ukraine offers to create strategic gas reserve for Europe in its UGS facilities

Ukraine welcomes the decision of European countries to create a platform for joint gas purchases and is ready to provide its underground storage facilities for the formation of a strategic fuel reserve, Minister of Energy Herman Galushchenko said, Report informs citing Interfax-Ukraine.

“Ukraine has significant natural gas storage capacity - our underground storage facilities are the largest in Europe. In our Regional Energy Security Partnership initiative, we propose to use our UGS facilities to create a strategic gas reserve for European countries,” Galushchenko wrote on March 26.

He noted that despite the hostilities, Ukraine continues to be a reliable partner of Europe in matters of energy security. “Joint purchase of gas and its storage in Ukrainian gas storage facilities will make it possible... to ensure reliable supplies of energy resources for the entire European continent,” the minister said.

The EU summit in Brussels on March 25 adopted the final document on the topic of energy, confirming the course towards getting rid of dependence on Russian gas, oil and coal as soon as possible.

The Council of the EU was instructed by the summit to consider the proposals of the European Commission on the policy of the European Union in the field of gas storage, taking into account the interests of member states to have significant storage capacities. The filling of gas storage facilities throughout the EU should begin as soon as possible, with full regard to national preparedness measures.