• Ukraine's geographic position and proximity to Russia explain its importance as a natural gas and petroleum liquids transit country. Approximately 3.0 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of natural gas flowed through Ukraine in 2013 to Austria, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Moldova, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, and Turkey.
• Two major pipeline systems carry Russian gas through Ukraine to Western Europe - the Bratstvo ("Brotherhood") and Soyuz ("Union") pipelines. The Bratstvo pipeline is Russia's largest pipeline to Europe. It crosses from Ukraine to Slovakia and splits into two directions to supply northern and southern European countries. The Soyuz pipeline links Russian pipelines to natural gas networks in Central Asia and supplies additional volumes to central and northern Europe. A third major pipeline through Ukraine delivers Russian natural gas to the Balkan countries and Turkey. In the past, disputes between Russia and Ukraine over natural gas supplies, prices, and debts have resulted in interruptions to Russia's natural gas exports through Ukraine, with the latest one occurring in 2009.
• The 400,000 bbl/d southern leg of the Druzhba oil pipeline transports Russian crude oil through Ukraine to supply most of the oil consumed by Slovakia, Hungary, Czech Republic, and Bosnia. In 2013, about 300,000 bbl/d of throughput transited the pipeline. Russian crude oil and petroleum products also transit Ukraine by rail for export out of Ukrainian ports.
• More than half of the country's primary energy supply comes from its uranium and coal resources, although natural gas also plays an important role in its energy mix. Ukraine consumed approximately 1.8 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of natural gas in 2012, with domestic production accounting for approximately 37% of the total at 694 billion cubic feet (Bcf). The remainder of supply is made up by Russian natural gas, imported through the Bratstvo and Soyuz pipelines.
• In 2012, Ukraine generated a total of 185 billion kilowatthours (BkWh) of electricity. The country is heavily dependent on nuclear energy—its fifteen reactors generate roughly half of the total electric power supply. Fossil fuel sources (46%) and hydropower (6%) generate the remainder of Ukraine's electric power, with marginal volumes contributed by wind generation.
• Most of Ukraine's primary energy consumption is fueled by natural gas (about 40%), coal (about 28%), and nuclear (about 18%). Only a relatively small portion of the country's total energy consumption is accounted for by petroleum and other liquid fuels and renewable energy sources.
• In 2012, Ukraine consumed 319,000 barrels per day (bbl/d) of liquid fuels, but produced only 80,400 bbl/d. The remainder was imported mostly from Russia, with smaller volumes originating in Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan. A payment issue caused Russia to halt crude oil deliveries to Ukraine's 56,000 bbl/d Odessa refinery in January 2014.
• Recent discoveries of shale gas deposits in Ukraine provide the country with a possible means to diversify its natural gas supplies away from Russia. In January 2013, Shell agreed to explore an area which the government estimates holds about 4 Tcf of shale natural gas in reserves. Current plans include development of shale gas resources for domestic consumption and exports to Western Europe by 2020.

Analysis Last Updated: March 2014