Ukraine’s largest natural gas producer UkrGasVydobuvannya (UGV) has increased annual gas extraction by about 700 million cubic meters in 2023, with an 11% boost in the daily flow rate, CEO Oleg Tolmachev said on Jan. 31. State-owned Naftogaz Group owns 100% of UkrGasVydobuvannya shares.

“The company has increased its annual [gas] output for the first time in five years,” Interfax-Ukraine news agency quoted Tolmachev.

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“We have broken the downward trend that UGV has had since 2019, and in 2023 we added about 700 million cubic meters, compared to 2022.”

The daily production rate increased by 11%, or more than 4 million cubic meters, throughout 2023.

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“Although the [gas] wells in our portfolio are 70% depleted, we continue to optimize our work at these sites through the use of mechanized elevators, the latest 3D seismic and modern 2D seismic scanning, which allows us to look for untapped pockets of gas,” the CEO explained.

Investing in refurbishing old wells has also contributed to increasing output, according to Tolmachev.

UGV plans to conduct 3D seismic scans in eastern Ukraine to expand the gas fields discovered in 2023.

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“There are very interesting prospects, we need to do more 3D seismic [scanning],” said Tolmachev stated.

“We have a large number of projects to optimize the surface infrastructure and pressure optimization for additional production rates. We are preparing to start horizontal drilling. We have strategic plans laid out through 2027.”

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