The head of Naftogaz is on a working trip to the Kharkiv region on the eve of the heating season

Oleksiy Chernyshov, Chairman of the Board of Naftogaz of Ukraine NJSC, visited the Kharkiv region on a working trip before the heating season. Chernyshov held a meeting with the teams of the Kharkiv branch and the Kharkiv city branch of Gazmerezhi. This was reported by the Naftogaz press service.

During the discussion of current issues, the head of Naftogaz thanked the employees for their good work in preparing for the heating season.

He reminded that in 2023 it was possible to increase the production of Ukrainian gas by 7%, as well as to fill the underground storages ahead of winter ahead of time. So, as of mid-October, more than 15.8 bcm of gas are already stored at UGS.

Now, according to Chernyshov, the issue of effective gas distribution is no less important, given the potential threats and attacks on critical infrastructure from Russia.

"We have some experience based on the results of the previous year. But we understand that the enemy has also drawn conclusions. Therefore, we should be prepared for unexpected scenarios. We are cooperating with distribution network enterprises of the city of Kharkiv and the Kharkiv region in order, despite all threats, to provide Kharkiv region with heat and eliminate these risks, which, unfortunately, are quite possible," said Chernyshov.

Oleksiy Skryl, the chairman of the board of Gazmerezh on the other hand, stated that work in this direction is underway: "We are moving in the direction of building a national operator of gas distribution networks of Ukraine. The process of integration of regional gas into a single system continues."

Dmytro Bezpalov, acting director of the Kharkiv branch, added that the company currently serves 12,300 km of gas networks, which is more than 450,000 consumers. "There are questions because we are in a state of war. Only since July 2023, 180 km of gas pipelines and 3 gas regulatory points have been restored. In general, we are 100% ready for the heating season," he added.

"Our gas networks are constantly expanding. Today it is about 2.6 thousand km. The main direction of work is the distribution of natural gas to residents of the city of Kharkiv, institutions, state employees, legal entities, and other consumers. We are sure that 100% of all equipment has been tested and repaired," - assured the acting director of the Kharkiv city branch Vitaly Stepanenko.