According to Ukrtranshaz, the reserves of blue fuel in Ukrainian storage facilities are a third lower than last year
As of 1 October, Ukraine had only 18.7bn cu.m. of gas in its underground storage facilities. In 2020, there were over 28bn cu.m. of blue fuel. In September 2021, underground gas storage facilities were filled with 0.7bn cubic metres of fuel, which is 3.4 times less than in September 2020.
Experts note that the low volumes of gas in Ukrainian storage facilities after allowing foreign traders to store their fuel have had a negative impact on European markets, where gas prices are already breaking historic records.
According to Ukrtranshaz, foreign service customers store about 2.8bn cu.m. of gas in Ukraine under the “customs warehouse” regime, which allows holding natural gas for up to 1,095 days without paying taxes and customs duties. This volume is 3.5 times less than last year’s figure. Ukrainian companies reduced the volume of fuel in the “customs warehouse” regime by 1.7 times.
As News Front earlier reported, the price of blue fuel on the Ukrainian exchange has reached almost 1,500 dollars per 1,000 cu.m. The head of the Energy Suppliers Association, Artem Kompan, said that a cold winter could lead to a catastrophic gas shortage in Ukraine.