NAFTA begun with the first exploration well Uzhgorod – 101 in Western Ukraine

NAFTA a.s. had entered the Ukrainian market through its subsidiary NAFTA International B.V. after joint venturing with Cub Energy Inc. to own 50% in the license to exploration and production of hydrocarbons in Uzhgorod. Since 2016, the partners have been actively focusing in the joint project on exploration of the Uzhgorod License in western Ukraine.

As part of the license, NAFTA and Cub Energy undertook 3D seismic exploration over a 118 square kilometers area. Experts from both companies have analyzed and interpreted the resulting seismic data, identifying several prospects. The first three of them will be followed up in the coming months. The partners had earlier concentrated on handling inputs and obtaining land permits to drill and access roads. Besides authorizations required by legislation (such as the environmental impact assessment), they were also preparing for drilling of the exploration wells.

“NAFTA consider working with Cub Energy Inc. to have been a successful launch of our foreign activities. We especially appreciate this partnership as the opportunity to demonstrate our extensive experience in areas such as geology, reservoir engineering and drilling,” said Martin Bartošovič, the CEO of NAFTA.

Ukraine is one of the largest consumers of natural gas in Europe. Stepping up the exploiting of its own natural gas reserves could help reduce the country's dependence on imports over the medium term.