Ukraine Proceeds with Preliminary Works at Skifska Natural Gas Field

Ukraine is proceeding with the preliminary works to produce gas at the Skifska field, with a senior official saying that a production sharing agreement (PSA) could be signed in three months. 

“We are working and there is progress. We expect to sign the PSA by the mid fall,” said Volodymyr Ignashchenko, Adviser to the Ukraine’s Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources.

The announcement follows a similar statement by the Cabinet of Ministers, which said in April that the PSA would have been signed by August. 

Ignashchenko recently claimed that Ukraine could become a net exporter of gas by the mid 2020s.

“The point of no return has been crossed,” declared Ignashchenko in May. 

Despite some delays, Ukraine seems one of the most promising countries for shale gas explorations, with JKX Oil & Gas reporting good results in the first fracs at the well R-103.

Ukraine's government is keen to produce locally to ease dependence on Russia. Kiev also continues to make ambitious plans to decrease national energy consumption, switch its power stations from natural gas to coal, build an LNG terminal, and open reverse flows of gas from Europe.

The Skifska field, located in the Black Sea Shelf, is estimated to have between 200 and 250 billion cubic metres of gas. In August 2012, Kiev selected a consortium led by ExxonMobil and Royal Dutch Shell, with the contribution of OMV Petrom from Romania and the Ukrainian National Oil Company Nadra Ukrainy. The four companies won the bid to develop the Skifska field, beating competition from Russian oil and gas company LUKoil.