Ukraine restarts hydrocarbon tenders under US partnership deal

Ukraine’s Cabinet of Ministers has approved the relaunch of tenders for hydrocarbon distribution in the Mezhigorsk and Svitchansk areas, spanning the Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk and Chernivtsi regions, Prime Minister Yulia Sviridenko announced on August 14.

According to Sviridenko, the updated tender terms grant the US partner the right to purchase the output and guarantee that no other bidders will receive more favourable conditions, Caliber.Az reports via Ukrainian media. 

The move follows provisions in a recently signed US–Ukrainian agreement to establish a recovery investment fund.

The prime minister also ordered the Ministry of Economy and the State Geological Survey to audit all subsoil users holding permits for strategically important deposits.

“We plan to check who is actually working and who holds licences without producing anything. Such facilities must either produce results or be returned to auction for conscientious investors,” she said, stressing that Ukraine’s natural resources must serve the national economy.

The US–Ukraine mineral resources agreement, signed on May 1, aims to channel proceeds from the sale of Ukrainian minerals into the investment fund to support the country’s economic recovery.

By Sabina Mammadli