Naftogaz appointee to boost Ukraine's gas output

State oil and gas company Naftogaz Ukrainy has appointed an experienced upstream specialist Mavrikii Kalugin, a US citizen, to advise the board on oil and gas production.

The country has very large reserves of gas but Naftogaz has struggled to produce it economically, although today's high prices make the task a little easier. The previous CEO of Naftogaz was criticised for failing to boost output, despite directing a lot of public money upstream. His successor Yuri Vitrenko has vowed to make it a priority.

"The stabilisation and growth of gas production is one of Naftogaz's key tasks. I hope my experience and efforts will assist in the achievement of this goal, which is important for the company and the country as a whole," Kalugin said June 23.

Kalugin has 20 years' experience of the oil and gas industry, with deep knowledge of the management of oil and gas producing companies and oilfield service companies, both in optimising production and in greenfield developments, the company said.

For the last five years he worked in Ukrnafta, advising the chairman of the supervisory board on production, and in other upstream and refining positions. The new approaches proposed by Kalugin, helped Ukrnafta stabilise hydrocarbon production despite the small amount the company invested in the programme.

A graduate of Idaho University, his previous experience includes management positions at Petrofac and TNK-BP.