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Ukraine Cuts Gas Storage Rates, Approves EU-Aligned Market Reform Rules

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Ukraine's energy regulator has approved lower gas storage tariffs and new EU-aligned market rules aimed at boosting reserves ahead of winter, according to a Tuesday statement from the National Commission for State Regulation of Energy and Public Utilities.

NEURC said it adopted a package of measures covering new tariffs for natural gas storage, injection and withdrawal services, as well as a transition to incentive-based regulation for JSC Ukrtransgaz, the Ukrainian state-owned company that operates the country's underground gas storage facilities and parts of its natural gas transmission infrastructure.

NEURC said the storage tariff cut was 10%. Injection and withdrawal tariffs were set at 290.45 Ukrainian hryvnia ($6.56) per 1,000 cubic meters per day, excluding value-added tax.

Starting June 1, the storage tariff will fall to 0.36 Ukrainian hryvnia per 1,000 cubic meters per day from the current 0.40 Ukrainian hryvnia, according to figures cited by the Ukrainian news outlet UNN.

The regulator also introduced new discounts for customers booking annual or bundled capacity, while shorter-term bookings will incur higher rates.

Ukraine operates Europe's largest underground gas storage network, with capacity exceeding 30 billion cubic meters, according to Reuters.

Kyiv has previously encouraged Western energy companies to store gas in Ukrainian facilities because of relatively low costs and the ability to withdraw supplies during winter for European markets.

Foreign companies stored up to 3 Bcm of gas in Ukraine in 2023, Reuters reported, although volumes later dropped sharply after intensified Russian attacks on Ukrainian gas infrastructure.

Separately, NEURC approved a transition to allocating cross-border gas transmission capacity in energy units measured in megawatt-hours per day, a step the regulator said would align Ukraine's gas market more closely with EU rules, UNN reported.

Auctions under the updated system will begin in July 2026, with capacity available from Oct. 1, the start of the next gas year.

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