Ukraine’s oil and gas company Naftogaz has entered into a deal with the Canadian energy developer Symbio Infrastructure to purchase liquefied natural gas (LNG) and green liquid hydrogen (LH2) from Canada.
Jim Illich (left) and Yuriy Vitrenko; Courtesy of CNW /Symbio Infrastructure
The parties signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on deliveries of low carbon LNG and green hydrogen to Ukraine on 5 June 2022 in Washington, D.C.
The companies intend that the LNG and LH2 will be delivered to an import terminal in a mutually agreed European transit country. Symbio will supply what it said is the world’s lowest carbon LNG toEuropethanks toCanada’s regulatory standards for natural gas production and the use of renewable hydroelectricity to power its facilities.
“This agreement is an important milestone onUkraine’spath of transitioning to diverse supplies of energy from around the globe, which we began at the end of 2014, when we stopped the direct import of Russian natural gas. Since then, we’ve fortified our energy independence by being an active player in the European energy market. We believe opportunities for procuring reliable, responsibly produced long-term energy supply from allies likeCanada– and from Symbio’s facilities – by 2027 is critical to our energy security, transition and future economic prosperity,” said Yuriy Vitrenko, CEO of Naftogaz Ukraine.
Jim Illich, founder and chairman of Symbio Infrastructure, said: “Energy from Symbio’s innovative, net-zero, hydropower-driven infrastructure will provide competitive energy toUkraineand will significantly reduce global GHG emissions by displacing higher emission energy sources used inEurope, such as coal, heavy fuel oil, and higher carbon intensity sources of natural gas and LNG.”
This MoU advances the stated ambition of the Canadian government, which has publicly confirmed its interest in helpingEuropeaddress its energy crisis and need for LNG supply diversification by fast-tracking relevant approvals to export natural gas from easternCanadatoEuropethrough ultra-low emissions LNG export facilities with the capability to export hydrogen in the future.
Symbio, through its subsidiary GNL Québec, is developing Énergie Saguenay, the large-scale, carbon-neutral LNG export facility inQuebec, Canada. The facility will liquefy and export 10.5 million tonnes or 15 billion cubic metres (bcm)/year of clean LNG toEurope(roughly 17 per cent of Germany´s annual gas consumption or about half ofUkraine’sconsumption).
Symbio said it will help diversify the European energy supply and contributeto Europe’senergy transition by building future-proof, net-zero, energy infrastructure. Pending the expedience of regulatory authorizations, Symbio’s projects are scheduled to start operations in 2027.
