The government published the terms of the PSA tender for oil and gas blocks in Western Ukraine

The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine announced a new tender for investors to conclude production sharing agreements (PSAs) for hydrocarbons to be extracted within two oil and gas blocks in Ukraine – Svichanska and Mezhyhirskа. The relevant decisions were published on the government’s website, ExPro reports.

The documents were developed to create conditions for attracting investment in hydrocarbon exploration and production on these blocks. Under the agreement between the governments of Ukraine and the United States on the establishment of an investment fund, the U.S. partner has the right of first purchase of the produced commodities (such as oil or gas) under the terms specified in the agreement.

Tender conditions

It is also stipulated that the two previous government resolutions dated April 8, 2025, on holding tenders for the Svichanska and Mezhyhirskа oil and gas blocks will be repealed. Both sites are located within the Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk, and Chernivtsi regions.

Applications for participation in the tender will be accepted within three months from the date of publication of the announcement, i.e., approximately until mid-November 2025. Within one month after the deadline for submission of bids, the Interdepartmental Commission for the organization of conclusion and execution of production sharing agreements must prepare and submit to the Cabinet of Ministers its conclusions and proposals on determining the winners.

The PSAs are planned to be concluded for a term of 50 years. The investor’s share in profit hydrocarbons may amount to 35% (if the maximum amount of cost hydrocarbons exceeds the recoverable accounting costs) or 65% (if the recoverable accounting costs exceed the maximum amount of cost hydrocarbons).

Svichanska block

The Svichanska block is located within the Stryi and Sambir districts of the Lviv region, Verkhovyna, Kalush, Ivano-Frankivsk, Nadvirna districts of the Ivano-Frankivsk region, and Vyzhnytsia district of the Chernivtsi region.

The block consists of seven areas: Svichanska, Orivska, Novytska first, Novytska second, Liubyzhnianska (with exclusions), Putylska, Verkhnodnistrovska, and Bolonivska (in the depth interval from the surface to 750 m, from 1,180 m – without depth restrictions, excluding the Bilche-Volytsko-Uherske underground gas storage facility). The total area of the Svichanska block is 872.6 sq. km. The resource base of the block is 33 million tons of hydrocarbons.

The winner must conduct electrometry and gravimetry of the entire block, except for the areas where 3D seismic surveys have been carried out. Within 5 years, the winner must conduct 3D seismic surveys on at least 300 sq. km of the block and drill at least two exploration wells. The minimum investment during this period is at least UAH 1 billion.

Mezhyhirskа block

The Mezhyhirskа block is located within the Stryi, Sambir, Lviv, Yavoriv, and Sheptytskyi districts of the Lviv region, Kalush, Ivano-Frankivsk, Nadvirna districts of the Ivano-Frankivsk region, and Vyzhnytsia district of the Chernivtsi region.

The block consists of six areas: Rava-Ruska, Skhidno-Kaluska, Pivdenno-Bohorodchanska, Rozhynska, Mezhyhirskа, and Tershivska. The total area of the Mezhyhirskа block is 1,515.61 sq. km. The resource base of the block is 21.9 million tons of hydrocarbons.

The winner must conduct electrometry and gravimetry of the entire block, except for the areas where 3D seismic surveys have been carried out. Within 5 years, the winner must conduct 3D seismic surveys on at least 400 sq. km of the block and drill at least two exploration wells. The minimum investment during this period is at least UAH 1 billion.

According to the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine, in 2023, the state-owned Ukrgasvydobuvannya applied for PSAs on the Svichanska and Mezhyhirskа blocks.