EU’s strategic gas reserve may be stored in Ukrainian storage facilities, says Lithuanian energy minister

Ukraine’s gas storage facilities could play a role in the European Union’s energy balance by serving as a storage site for the EU’s strategic gas reserve after the country joins the bloc.

Lithuanian Energy Minister Žygimantas Vaičiūnas expressed this view in an interview with Ukrinform.

He noted that he discussed the gas sector during his visit to Kyiv.

We used the Lithuanian LNG terminal to transfer gas to Ukraine through Poland. From the last year until now, four LNG cargoes have been transmitted to the Ukrainian system. The next point is that we discussed the potential of the underground gas storage in Ukraine and how to ensure that there is a strategic gas reserve for Europe,” the Lithuanian official stated.

In his opinion, this could benefit both Ukraine and the EU.

“We see clear interest from Ukraine to elaborate on the underground gas storage, which is the biggest in Europe. Gas will still be important as a transitory and reserve fuel in the long-term future despite the decarbonization. Hence, it would be important to strategically ensure internal storage capacities with the future membership of Ukraine,” the minister noted.

As reported by Ukrinform, Vaičiūnas stated that during its presidency of the EU Council, Lithuania is ready to facilitate the adoption of a decision to completely abandon imports of Russian oil as part of the tightening of sanctions.