On November 4, 2022, the Ukraine government appointed Oleksiy Chernyshov as the CEO of Naftogaz.
In recent weeks, Russia has carried out its heaviest bombing of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure since the start of the full-scale invasion.
Meanwhile, investigators have discovered Traces of explosives at the site of the damaged Nord Stream pipeline confirm the use of sabotage to restrict the flow of gas to Europe. Russia too now threat To further reduce gas supplies to Moldova in an attempt to destabilize the pro-European government in Chisinau.
As the Russian assault force struggles to hold its ground against the Ukraine army, the Kremlin has turned to energy as its main weapon. By depriving the Ukrainian people of heat and electricity, Russia is trying to break the fighting spirit of our population and using energy blackmail to persuade European governments to stop supporting us.
Determined resistance by Ukraine and its Western allies has led to the failure of Russia’s military strategy – an outcome that some experts see as the beginning of a full-scale invasion. We need to work together now to thwart Russia’s ruthless use of energy, and allow the Ukrainian military to continue its advance and restore the country’s territorial integrity. But to do that, we need to move fast, because Russia’s recent missile attacks have crippled nearly half of Ukraine’s energy system.
On 15 November, a major attack targeted gas production facilities in eastern Ukraine, destroying some and damaging others. Since the start of the war, domestic gas production had made up the bulk of Ukraine’s gas balance. We had enough gas in storage to meet our population’s basic needs this winter, but damage to our production facilities and other parts of the heating system risks millions of Ukrainian households facing gas shortages or their heating and power cuts would be detected. off.
It is essential that Ukraine continues to produce gas in order to achieve a minimum level of energy security.
We are grateful for the equipment already supplied by some of our Western partners to help us deal with the damage caused by Russia’s attacks. These include generators to provide electricity for gas processing.
However, after attacks on our gas fields, we need to replace compressors and separators for gas treatment immediately. We also need specialist equipment to carry out drilling operations in the absence of foreign service companies that have left Ukraine since the start of the war. And in some places, we are short of vehicles that we donated to the Ukrainian army.
Recently announced loans and grants from our international partners – the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the Norwegian government – will provide much-needed liquidity support and the first tranche of trade finance that will secure heating for homes, schools and offices, and the economy. Produce electricity to keep it running.
The war has highlighted that we cannot rely on non-democratic countries to meet our energy needs without putting ourselves at risk.
We are also developing strategic projects – including fuel switching in heat and electricity generation, energy efficiency measures, development of biogas, as well as steps to increase gas production. Successful implementation of these projects will increase Ukraine’s energy flexibility and eliminate the need for gas imports. This would create the possibility for Ukraine to export competitively produced gas to the European market.
To achieve these goals, we must enhance Naftogaz’s business performance and restore the trust of our partners.
On my first day as CEO, I asked the Cabinet to begin the process of selecting a new Supervisory Board. The appointment of a well-qualified Board will strengthen Naftogaz’s corporate governance and improve our decision-making abilities. However, Naftogaz will only be able to implement this strategy if Russia is forced to back down and admit that it cannot end Ukraine’s sovereignty and independence.
In recent months, we have succeeded against the odds in repelling Russia’s invasion and demonstrating with the lives of our citizens that Ukraine is a European country, forced to be part of Russia’s so-called “world”. Can’t be done.
Of course, this could not have happened without the support of our Western partners, who quickly saw that Russia not only wanted to subdue Ukraine but also saw an opportunity to upend the Euro-Atlantic and Pacific security systems. We are particularly encouraged by the G7’s decision to impose a price cap on Russian oil exports, which went into effect on 5 December.
It is vitally important that the Russian war machine is no longer funded by Western purchases of Russia’s energy exports.
As Russia steps up its assault on our energy sector, Ukraine and its Western partners must stand together and build on the resilience they have achieved in the military.
Together, we can blunt Russia’s energy weapon and force it to leave Ukraine in peace.