Ukrnafta acquires special permit at auction for 1st time in its history

MOSCOW. Nov 1 (Interfax) - Ukrnafta has acquired a special permit for an oil and gas area in Ukraine's Ivano-Frankovsk region for 20 years.

"This is the first special permit in the company's history, obtained through an auction of the Ukrainian State Geology and Subsoil Service. The company won the auction with a bid of 6.5 million hryvni," Ukrainian media quoted the company as saying in a statement on Friday.

The new area covering around nine square kilometers is located between Ukrnafta's two existing deposits, which makes the required infrastructure for hydrocarbon production available.

The area is expected to include promising reserves of oil, gas and condensate, and the density of unexplored resources is from 30,000 to 50,000 tonnes of hydrocarbons per one square kilometer.

The company's priority plans involve conducting a set of geophysical and geological-industrial surveys to explore the capacity of the new area in detail, Ukrnafta said.

"The purchase of this special permit will contribute to expanding Ukrnafta's resource base and will promote the development of production," it said.

Ukrnafta is a Ukrainian largest oil producer and an operator of a nationwide chain of filling stations. The company took over Glusco's asset management in March 2024 and operates 545 filling stations, including 460 of its own and 85 under management.

Ukrnafta's largest shareholder is Naftogaz of Ukraine with a 50% stake plus one share. The Ukrainian Armed Forces' supreme commander-in-chief decided in November 2022 to transfer to the state a share of the company's corporate rights held by private owners, which is currently managed by the Defense Ministry.