Thursday, September 01, 2011
Dow Jones Newswires
KIEV
Ukraine Thursday awarded its first shale gas exploration contract to the Anglo-Dutch giant Shell in a deal worth up to $800 million, Ukraine's state gas exploration company said.
"In case of successful exploration work and the start of intense project development, Shell's total investment under the agreement may come to $800 million," Ukrgazvydobuvannya said in a statement issued after the signing.
Ukraine is widely believed to be one of Europe's largest holders of the new energy resource, with estimated reserves up to 1.5 trillion cubic meters, according to industry analysts.
No official estimate has been made and there is no confirmed figure of how much shale gas might be hidden in the six blocks awarded to Shell near northeastern city of Kharkiv.
Ukraine lacks the advanced technology necessary to produce the hard-to-recover resource and is also holding negotiations with such Western majors as the U.S. firms Chevron and ExxonMobil.
The former Soviet republic has few other natural resources and relies on Russia for most of its gas imports.
But it has been trying to lower its energy dependence on its neighbor since a price dispute temporarily cut Russian gas flows in January 2009 and is now focusing on other sources of energy that include coal.
"The agreement with Shell will be one of the first examples of Ukraine's successful cooperation in hydrocarbons development with an international energy company," Ukrgazvydobuvannya chief Yuriy Borysov said.
Ukrgazvydobuvannya said Shell would be operating in Ukraine through a joint venture but offered no other immediate details.
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