Naftogaz is already buying gas with an EBRD loan

Naftogaz of Ukraine has already started purchasing natural gas with the loan funds provided in August by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) – €500 million. Naftogaz CEO Sergii Koretskyi announced this during a national TV marathon.

“The latest agreement with the EBRD for €0.5 billion has already been signed, the money is available, and we have already imported the first volumes of gas with these funds,” Koretskyi said.

This is the largest loan agreement the EBRD has ever signed in Ukraine. It is also the first time that the loan was provided under guarantees from the European Union.

Attracted funds

In addition, Ukrainian banks PrivatBank and UGB Ukrgasbank provided UAH 4.7 billion each in loans to Naftogaz for natural gas purchases as part of preparations for winter. The Norwegian government also allocated about €85 million in a grant through the EBRD for Naftogaz.

Koretskyi also reported that work on new loan agreements is ongoing and expressed hope that these agreements will be officially announced soon, which will allow for the purchase of additional volumes of natural gas.

Gas imports

According to ExPro, natural gas imports to Ukraine remain relatively high in August, over 20 mcm per day. Most of the natural gas is being imported by Naftogaz, purchasing gas with the provided funds and injecting the resource into underground storage for the winter. At the same time, private companies in August also stepped up natural gas imports amid lower gas prices in Europe.

To achieve the official target of 13.2 bcm of natural gas in storage by November 1, Ukraine needs to inject about 2.4 bcm, about half of which should come from imports.