Naftogaz: Norway will finance Ukrainian gas purchases

Norway will finance Ukrainian purchases of natural gas from its country, Ukraine's Naftogaz said on Tuesday. This comes against a backdrop of an increase in Ukrainian imports, as the war between Russia is affecting the energy system of the country.

The aid is part of an overall 380 million euro package ($400 million), financed by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. Its goal is to boost Ukraine's energy independence.

In a press release, Roman Chumak CEO of Naftogaz Group (owned by the Ukrainian state) said that "this assistance is critical for the stability" of Ukraine's Energy System.

I am grateful for the continued support of Norway and EBRD in helping our country.

In his video nightly address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy mentioned the grant for gas procurement. He said it was part a larger assistance programme worth $3.5 billion.

In a Naftogaz press release, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store was quoted as saying that Ukraine also needed energy assistance in addition to its military aid. He said that this support, which includes funding for gas purchases "is an important component" of Norway's aid.

Last week, a senior industry source said that Ukraine was planning to import 800 million cubic meters (mcms) of gas in Europe during February and March in order to compensate for the sometimes 40% decrease in production following Russian missile attacks on the sector.

Since its full-scale invasion in February 2022, Russia has focused on missiles and drone attacks against Ukraine's electric sector. However, it has intensified attacks on gasfields over the past few weeks.

Naftogaz, a major private energy firm DTEK and Naftogaz have both reported that Russia has damaged and attacked their facilities at least two times in February. (Reporting and editing by Stephen Coates; Ron Popeski)

(source: Reuters)