Chevron and Royal Dutch Shell are to be awarded the rights to explore for unconventional gas in Ukraine, potentially catapulting it to the forefront of Europe’s fledgling shale sector as it tries to cut its dependence on neighbouring Russia.
Ukraine sits along one of the main transport routes for natural gas from Russia to Europe. The country’s often tense negotiations over the price it pays Moscow for its own gas imports have in the past prompted Russia to cut off supplies in winter, hitting households across Europe as well as Ukrainians.
A senior Ukrainian official said Chevron and Shell had beaten three other energy majors to explore two vast regions in the east and west of the country. The deals could pave the way for the largest foreign investments in Ukraine’s post-Soviet history.