Naftogaz of Ukraine plans to import 2-3 billion cubic meters of gas for domestic consumption in preparation for the 2024/2025 heating season. This is stated in the published article memoranda on economic and financial policy related to the fifth review of the EFF program with the IMF.
According to the document, gas imports are necessary to meet the needs of the Ukrainian population, and additional gas can be stored by non-residents in Ukraine for EU countries. In the last heating season, the decrease in domestic consumption and the increase in gas production made it possible to reduce the need for imports.
For this heating season, Naftogaz received additional financing from the EBRD and bilateral donors for the purchase of gas. If the company faces financial difficulties, the government will assess the amount of special liability compensation (SLO) in 2025, taking into account the costs confirmed by the State Audit Service.
The document also states that the potential costs of gas import and compensation of PSO will be taken into account in the state budget, in particular, taking into account the results of the audit of the debts of heat supply organizations. The total amount of expenses is limited to UAH 60 billion (approximately 0.8% of GDP).
In addition, the document envisages further reforms in the energy sector, including a gradual increase in gas and electricity tariffs while supporting vulnerable consumers. After the end of the war, the government plans to restore competition in the gas and electricity markets, as well as adopt a road map for the liberalization of these markets.
We will remind that the head of NJSC “Naftogaz” Oleksiy Chernyshov announced in October that the company plans to purchase up to 600 million cubic meters of gas in the “customs warehouse” mode with the support of the EBRD loan, which was attracted in the amount of 300 million euros at the end of 2022. A new agreement for an additional 200 million euros from the EBRD was signed in November 2023.
