OREANDA-NEWS  On 20 February was announced, that the Ukrainian Government approved a resolution on extraction and utilization of methane gas from the coal fields. The relevant decision was taken during a sitting of the Cabinet of Ministers, dedicated to realization of investment projects.

Minister of Coal Industry of Ukraine Viktor Poltavets noted after the sitting that the approval of this Government’s resolution would systematize the work on extraction and utilization of methane. Besides, according to the Minister, the inventorization of methane resources will be held.

 Viktor Poltavets noted that the approval of resolution would encourage the increase in security level in the mines and the increase in volumes of alternative kinds of fuel.

As the Minister said, in accordance with the resolution, an Interagency working group for elaboration of measures connected with the extraction and utilization of methane gas from the coal fields would be created. The group will elaborate the draft statutory legal acts, define preliminary volumes and directions to finance the priority measures.

 The Minister reminded that Ukraine has large but not exploited methane resources of the coal fields. The state takes the 4th place in methane reserves in the world. By the experts’ estimation, the reserves are concentrated in the Donetsk and Lviv-Volyn coal fields and totaling about 12 trillion cubic meters, about 10% of which are exploitable.