Platts: Ukraine, Chevron to sign shale gas project agreement in March: minister

Ukraine and Chevron will sign an operational agreement in March that should see the US major start work on shale gas extraction in the country, acting Energy and Coal Industry Minister Eduard Stavytskiy said Saturday.

"We have worked out the agreement and will sign it in March," Stavytskiy said at a press conference. "I hope that we will complete this work in the first quarter." Ukraine and Chevron signed a production sharing agreement, or PSA, in November 2013, paving the way for a $10 billion shale gas development project in regions bordering the European Union.

The agreement, which follows a similar deal signed with Shell in January 2013, is seen as improving the country's energy security and potentially reducing dependence on imports of natural gas from Russia.  MORE