Ukraine's state energy giant Naftogaz has commissioned a new exploration well producing 383,000 cubic meters of natural gas per day through its subsidiary Ukrgazvydobuvannya, CEO Sergii Koretskyi announced on July 8.

The 5.7-kilometer deviated well was drilled and commissioned six weeks ahead of schedule as Ukraine works to boost domestic production amid Russian attacks on its energy infrastructure, including gas storage facilities in western Ukraine.

"This is a significant achievement, given the country's need for gas," Koretskyi said.

Naftogaz produces the lion's share of Ukrainian gas, but its production facilities were severely damaged in a series of Russian missile strikes earlier this year, reducing production by as much as 40%.

According to data from Naftogaz, Ukrgazvydobuvannya lost about 50% of its production due to shelling.

Ukrgazvydobuvannya managed to increase commercial gas production to 13.9 billion cubic meters (bcm) in 2024 compared to 13.2 bcm in 2023, commissioning 83 new wells despite wartime conditions.

Ukraine previously produced 52 million cubic meters daily before Russia's full-scale invasion, but required 110-140 million cubic meters during winter months, covering the shortfall from underground storage.

Russian strikes have repeatedly targeted Ukraine's gas infrastructure, including a February 11 combined missile and drone attack that damaged Naftogaz production facilities in Poltava Oblast.

To secure winter supplies, Naftogaz has signed four contracts with Poland's Orlen for delivery of 440 million cubic meters of U.S. liquefied natural gas. The latest agreement, announced July 2, covers an additional 140 million cubic meters.

According to Bloomberg estimates, in 2025 Ukraine may import a record 5 billion cubic meters of gas from Europe.

Ukraine's gas storage situation has also deteriorated significantly, with underground reserves falling to 6.02 bcm as of May 11 — the lowest level in at least 11 years.

The facilities are operating at just 19.4% capacity, with 2.79 billion cubic meters less gas available than the previous year.

Ukraine’s minerals fund focus of private investment ahead of major recovery conference

This week, thousands of companies, business heads, and global leaders are headed to Rome for the fourth Ukraine Recovery Conference on July 10, with many companies hoping for more clarity around the future of a U.S.-Ukraine minerals deal. It’s been over two months since President Volodymyr Zelensky signed Washington’s so-called “minerals deal” — which, in reality, covers all Ukraine’s natural resources, including oil and gas, related infrastructure, and now, defense projects. While the Economy

The Kyiv IndependentDominic Culverwell

Ukraine's Cabinet of Ministers rejected a nominee to lead the economic crimes agency, drawing swift criticism from lawmakers and businesses over alleged interference in the selection process.

The agency, the Bureau of Economic Security, was created in 2021 to investigate economic crimes. It has since faced accusations of being used to pressure — and in some cases extort — businesses, prompting multiple calls and efforts to overhaul it.

Selecting a new director of the agency by the end of July is one of Ukraine's obligations to the EU and International Monetary Fund as part of international financing packages extended to the war-torn country by the institutions.

As part of a recent attempt to relaunch the bureau, Oleksandr Tsyvinsky on June 30 was officially nominated by the bureau's selection commission that consists of six members — three from the government and three international experts. Tsyvinsky is known for exposing schemes involving illegal land seizures in Kyiv..

But Ukraine's government on July 8 said it had rejected Tsyvinsky following alleged concerns raised by the country's intelligence service of potential Russian connections.

The government unanimously decided to ask the commission to submit two new candidates who meet all security requirements, the government press service wrote on its official Telegram channel, a move it claims aligns with the law.

Following Tsyvinsky's nomination, it was revealed that his father holds a Russian passport. He has said he hasn't spoken to his father, who lives in Russia, in years.

Tsyvinsky holds clearance for state secrets and has passed special vetting, backed by over 20 years in law enforcement, including nearly a decade at the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU).

Opposition lawmaker Yaroslav Zhelizniak, said the government had no grounds to reject a properly nominated candidate, claiming President Volodymyr Zelensky's office is behind the blocking of the nomination.

"The (bureau's) legislation provides no legal grounds for the cabinet to demand a new shortlist or impose additional, undefined requirements such as 'security criteria.' The term itself is absent from any statute and therefore has no legal force," Zhelizniak said.

"The SBU letter in this case is nothing more than an indicator of the winner's disloyalty to the President's Office and a desire to block the appointment," said Olena Shcherban, deputy executive director of the AntAC in a statement following the news.

Major business associations have called on Zelensky, Parliament Speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk, and Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal to reverse the government's decision.

The business groups warned that failing to reform the agency will harm investment decisions, particularly as Ukraine's wartime economy needs to attract capital.

"War is a time for radical changes in the rule of law and business climate, otherwise the economy cannot ensure the country's survival," the businesses wrote in an open letter.

‘Neither side wasted time’ — Ukraine’s economy minister on minerals deal negotiations with Trump’s ‘business-oriented’ administration

Ukraine’s Economy Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko says her task is simple — to get the investment fund behind the closely watched minerals deal with the U.S. off the ground, and prove its detractors wrong. “There are so many criticisms from different parties that this fund is just a piece of paper we can put on the shelves — that it won’t be operational,” Svyrydenko, who is also Ukraine’s first deputy prime minister, tells the Kyiv Independent at Ukraine’s Cabinet of Ministers on July 4, the morning

The Kyiv IndependentLiliane Bivings