Achieving energy independence has become a top priority for the country, said Ukraine President Viktor Yanukovych during a meeting in Washington, DC.
The meeting of the working group on energy security was co-chaired by the Ukrainian Energy and Coal Industry Minister Yuriy Boyko and Special Envoy of the United States Secretary of State for Eurasian Energy, Richard Morningstar.
The United States welcomed the steps taken by the Ukrainian government to create a volatile economy model. "A successful energy program will reduce dependence on traditional resources such as gas," said Morningstar.
"Ukraine has made concrete steps toward development of shale gas production,” said Minister Boyko. “The first license tenders have been awarded to Shell and Chevron. Ukraine will continue moving in this direction, since the potential of shale gas is huge." The minister said Ukraine will soon hold new tenders for the development of two deep-water areas on the Black Sea shelf.
The working group also discussed issues of energy security in Eurasia, ways of diversifying energy supplies to Ukraine, as well as the reform of Ukrainian state owned oil and gas company Naftogaz.
The working group also highlighted bilateral cooperation in the nuclear sector. "Ukraine fulfilled all its promises to transfer highly enriched uranium to the United States. Moreover, we are actively working on improving nuclear safety programs at Ukrainian nuclear power plants and have achieved significant results there," concluded Boyko.
