Ukrainian company to boost European energy security with first LNG cargo from US
The trading arm of Ukrainian energy company Dtek hopes to sign an agreement this week to supply its first LNG cargo from US company Venture Global. Dtek is seeking further long-term supply agreements that would help Europe offset the loss of Russian gas.
“We see these volumes as part of the energy security of the entire [European] region, including Ukraine, of course,” D.Trading CEO Ivan Geliuch told Montel.
D.Trading, the trading arm of Ukrainian company Dtek, signed a 20-year agreement with Venture Global in June to supply up to 2 million tonnes of liquefied natural gas (LNG) per year, equivalent to 2.72 billion m3.
Geliuch said that only one cargo is likely to be delivered this year under the long-term agreement, and it is expected to arrive in December. More substantial volumes are expected in 2025, however. At this stage, it is not yet known which European port the cargo will be delivered to, or in which country or company the fuel will ultimately end up.
“We are considering various options. … As a newcomer to the market, we are constantly working to expand our customer portfolio, but we see demand for this volume,” Geliuch said.
The CEO said the company’s mission is to supply LNG to Europe to ensure security of supply for its customers, given the drastic decline in volumes of natural gas delivered by pipeline from Russia.
Before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in early 2022, the EU sourced 40% of its gas consumption from Russia, but that share has since fallen to around 10%. The EU aims to phase out all imports of Russian fossil fuels by 2027.
He acknowledged, however, that EU demand is likely to decline over the 20-year term of the supply agreement with Venture Global, so in the coming years the company will also take advantage of arbitrage opportunities by reselling LNG. The long-term agreement nevertheless gives the company greater price predictability, according to Geliuch.
Translation disclaimer
This article is a machine translation of the Czech original and has not yet been fully reviewed. In case of any doubt, please refer to the Czech version.
