25.03.2025
During lectures for the “EnergoStart: Education for the Future” program at Energy Club, gas sector lawyer Oleh Bakulin explains to attendees – including investors, business representatives, and members of local communities – how the natural gas market operates in Ukraine and the regulations that govern it. The information is presented from the consumer’s perspective.
“The interest shown by the attendees proves the lectures are useful – I even received phone calls for more in-depth discussions,” says Bakulin. “The information primarily concerns the consumer, who is the central figure in the natural gas market. I always try to present problematic issues from the standpoint of their interests. European legislation prioritizes the consumer. All reforms are implemented for their convenience and to avoid unnecessary costs. Things are a little different here, and in my lectures, I explain how the market works, the relationships within it, how things should be, and how the actions of government bodies and market participants directly affect the consumer.”
Speaking about Energy Club, Bakulin emphasized:
“Energy Club is a driver of change in the energy market, almost the only professional platform where problems, particularly those of the natural gas market, can be discussed. The events organized by the community are relevant, as they result in specific appeals to government bodies on pressing issues. This is very important because market participants not only highlight existing problems but also propose effective solutions. And there is feedback.”
When asked about current challenges requiring discussion and community involvement, Bakulin replied:
“The primary problem is the balancing of the gas transportation system – a topic that has remained relevant for many years and has been repeatedly raised at various levels, including at Energy Club. Attention must also be paid to the unjustified tariffs of the gas transportation system operator and the future unjustified tariffs of the gas storage operator – they significantly impact the natural gas market, and these supplier costs are ultimately paid by the consumer. And the third pressing issue is exchange trading. Unfortunately, we still lack a gas price indicator. The volumes of natural gas traded on the exchange are very small, although they should be larger. It is essential to introduce the mandatory sale of a portion of gas by extraction companies on the exchange. A corresponding bill was drafted some time ago.”
Energy Club Profile: Oleh Bakulin
Oleh Bakulin was born on October 28, 1969, in Chervonohvardiiske, Crimean Oblast. In 1994, he received a law degree from the Ukrainian Academy of Internal Affairs. He has been a lawyer since 2004. From 2011 to 2019, he headed the NGO “Union of Participants in the Liberalization of the Gas Market.” Since 2019, he has been a practicing lawyer in the gas sector. Since 2019, he has been an active member of Energy Club, an association of leading companies in Ukraine’s energy sector that creates opportunities for communication between energy market stakeholders.
The material was prepared within the framework of the program “EnergoStart: Training for the Future” program, implemented with the support of the project ‘Promoting Energy Efficiency and Implementation of the EU Energy Efficiency Directive in Ukraine’, implemented by GIZ Ukraine on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and co-financed by the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO). The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official position of GIZ Ukraine, BMZ or SECO.
