Roman Maliutin, acting Director General of Ukrtransgaz, the Storage System Operator of Ukraine, participated in the 3rd SEEGAS meeting

The South-East European Gas (SEEGAS) Initiative, launched by the Energy Community Secretariat, aims to improve cooperation between gas exchanges and transmission system operators in Central, Southern and Eastern Europe.

During the meeting in Vienna, Roman Maliutin spoke about a successful passage by underground storages of the heating season in Ukraine, an uninterrupted operation of Ukraine’s underground gas storages under martial law, and the potential for formation of a future Eastern European gas hub in Ukraine. 

“2022 was a challenging year for the company, however, due to the professionalism of our team, we were able to maintain the sustainability and continuity of all production and business processes. The aggregate capacity of Ukraine’s underground gas storages is almost 29% of the total capacity of EU storages. Last year, despite all the challenges we faced, the company did not reject any customer nomination and never referred to force majeure. 80% of our UGS are located in the west of the country, which guarantees safety of gas storage,” ‒ emphasized the acting Director General of Ukrtransgaz during the meeting. 

Roman Maliutin also noted that a cluster of underground gas storages in the western regions of Ukraine already has a strong potential to form a future Eastern European gas hub on its basis. In particular, this is due to its favorable geographical location near the border, developed infrastructure, and enhanced security measures. 

As a reminder, on March 1, 2023, the NEURC made a preliminary decision on certification of Ukrtransgaz in accordance with European regulations on the security of natural gas supplies.