Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal and Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico have agreed to set up an Eastern European energy hub, according to reports from Interfax-Ukraine.
The agreement was reached during a meeting near Ukraine’s western city of Uzhhorod on Monday.
Shmyhal stated that the new energy hub would bolster the energy security of both nations and benefit the broader European region.
The project will leverage Ukraine’s gas storage capacities, develop the Mukachevo-Velke Kapusany electricity interconnector, and expand nuclear energy cooperation between the two countries.
Additionally, Shmyhal announced that Ukraine would not renew its natural gas transit agreement with Russia, which expires this year.
However, he assured that Ukraine remains committed to its obligations under the EU Association Agreement and the Energy Charter Treaty.
The existing gas transportation deal between Ukraine’s Naftogaz and Russia’s Gazprom, signed in 2019, facilitated the transport of 14.646 million cubic meters of Russian gas through Ukraine last year.
