The State Service of Geology and Subsoil, on the basis of a court decision, canceled 3 special permits of NJSC Naftogaz of Ukraine for the development of oil and gas areas in the Poltava region, according to department order No. 527 dated December 1, a Politnavigator correspondent reports with reference to the company’s message.
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We are talking about special permits for the use of Obolonskaya (495,2 sq. km), Budishchansko-Chutovskaya (497,9 sq. km) and Pisarevskaya (471,9 sq. km) areas, the validity of which was suspended in March - these are the company’s only licenses on Ukrainian-controlled territory. Naftogaz owns 6 more licenses for oil and gas fields, work on which is impossible: 3 of them are located in the ATO zone and 3 on the continental shelf.
The claims of the State Geoondra were based on the dissatisfaction of the Poltava Regional Council, which on January 31 of this year officially called on the State Geoondra to take away these special permits from Naftogaz, as well as on appeals from People’s Deputy Sergei Kaplin.
Local deputies considered Naftogaz’s work on its licensed areas unsatisfactory and accused the company of violating the work program.
In turn, NJSC Naftogaz of Ukraine claims that it has invested a total of UAH 799 million in these areas.
Also, at the end of last year, an agreement was signed with its subsidiary Ukrgazvydobuvannya on the development of these areas. For 2017, funding for these works was provided in the amount of UAH 1,1 billion.
“The implementation of the work program for 2017 at the Budishchansko-Chutovsky license area, which is the most explored, will make it possible already in 2018 to ensure an increase in industrial gas reserves by approximately 1,2 billion cubic meters, oil - by approximately 0,5 million tons, and produce about 100 million cubic meters of gas and 15 thousand tons of oil,” Naftogaz claimed.
Naftogaz received 3 fields in the Poltava region in 2011. In March of this year, the State Geological and Natural Resources Service suspended these special permits and gave NAC 30 days to eliminate violations in these areas. After legal proceedings, on September 13, the court upheld the claim of the State Geological Service and allowed the special permits to be annulled. On November 14, the appeal court confirmed this decision, which became the basis for the cancellation of licenses.