Ukraine needs to import record 5 billion cubic meters of gas from Europe: new assessment

Ukraine will need to import an unprecedented 5 billion cubic meters of gas from Europe in the April 2025-April 2026 season—five times its previous peak—due to Russian strikes on energy infrastructure and dwindling reserves, Dmytro Sakharuk of D.Trading told Bloomberg on Tuesday.

"Russian attacks on energy infrastructure have pushed up demand," the CEO of D.Trading within Rinat Akhmetov’s DTEK energy group explained, noting that Ukraine has already burned through its reserve stocks in underground storage.

"Those stocks should be rebuilt. That’s why the volumes here are also quite substantial," he added.

"Plus we don’t exclude, we should not exclude new attacks that may come," said Sakharuk.

Even without new strikes, restoring domestic output will take time, leaving Ukraine reliant on Europe at a moment when regional supply tightens.

Before previous winter, Ukraine held 12.9 billion cubic meters in storage.

The escalation in Russian assaults, intensifying in early 2025, has gutted production, with Reuters reporting a 40% drop after missile strikes.