Law on biomethane development could be adopted on Oct 5 - advisor to Naftogaz head
KYIV. Sept 17 (Energy Reform) - The Verkhovna Rada may consider bill No. 5464 on the development of biomethane at second reading already at a meeting on October 5, Oleksiy Riabchyn, the advisor to the chairman of the board of NJSC Naftogaz Ukrainy on the development of low-carbon business and the European Green Deal, has said.
"Today I've spoken with Olha Stefanishyna, the Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration, who is planning a European integration day in parliament. We are considering the possibility that the second reading of this bill will take place on October 5, and it will be finalized. I also spoke about this with my colleagues from the committee," Riabchyn said during a round table in the framework of the Green Deal project on the topic "Ukrainian biomethane: how to dispose of the potential of bioenergetics" at the Interfax-Ukraine agency.
"This is preliminary information. But I hope it will be so, and now we are working on the amendments. And indeed we [Naftogaz] have joined our colleagues, the GTS operator and others, in promoting this bill," he added.
According to him, for Naftogaz it is very important against the background of decarbonization taking place in the world.
"All top companies not only in Ukraine, but all over the world set climate neutrality as the ultimate goal. Therefore, Naftogaz decided to develop low-carbon businesses: energy efficiency, combating methane losses, biogas, biomethane - everything that can decarbonize the conventional oil and gas company," the expert noted.
As reported, the Verkhovna Rada adopted draft law No. 5464 on amendments to the law of Ukraine on alternative fuels concerning the development of biomethane production at first reading on September 9.
The draft law regulates the concept of "biomethane" as "biogas," which by its physical and technical characteristics corresponds to the regulatory legal acts on natural gas for supply to gas distribution and gas transmission networks or for use as a motor fuel.
In addition, the document provides for the creation of a register of biomethane for accounting in the system, establishes the procedure for the formation of guarantees of the origin of biomethane.
According to the Bioenergy Association of Ukraine, the potential for biomethane production in Ukraine is 8 billion cubic meters per year, which corresponds to 25% of domestic gas consumption.
