Ukrainian gas pipeline capacity fully booked from Polish side for Q3

MOSCOW. June 19 (Interfax) - Access to the Ukraine-Poland virtual connection point on the side of Poland's Gaz-System in the amount of more than 4 million cubic meters of gas per day has been fully booked by traders for the third quarter of 2023.

The results of the quarterly auction demonstrate a readiness to use Ukrainian gas infrastructure from Polish side, as traders have already fully booked access to the Ukraine-Poland virtual connection point from the side of Poland's Gaz-System for July-September 2023, Ukrainian media reported, citing Ukraine's Gas Transmission System Operator (GTSOU).

The commercial flow of gas in Ukraine on the Polish route has totaled more than 2 bcm since 2020, first as virtual reverse supplies and since May 2022 in the form of a physical flow that has already exceeded 600 mcm in this direction, the company said.

GTSOU has been using Poland's GSA platform for auctions to distribute capacity at the Ukraine-Poland virtual connection point since 2020, and in three years it has held more than 30,000 auctions on the platform. The number of potential participants registered on the platform already totals 80 customers, the company said.

At GSA auctions on July 3, GTSOU and Gaz-System will offer 3.096 million kWh of increased gas capacity at the international connection between the two countries' gas transmission systems that might start operating in 2030 given sufficient demand to cover investment in infrastructure construction on the part of Gaz-System.