OREANDA-NEWS. The Ukrainian gas transmission system operator Ukrtransgaz and its Polish counterpart GAZ-SYSTEM have signed a cooperation agreement in Warsaw. The agreement was penned by GAZ-SYSTEM president Jan Chadam and Ukrtransgaz president Igor Prokopiv.

The document provides for integration of the two countries' gas transmission systems in order to increase Ukrainian gas imports from Europe as well as to hold gas in Ukrainian underground storage facilities to boost energy security across Europe.

"This agreement opens up new opportunities for development of Ukraine's gas transmission system and its integration into the European gas market. We sincerely thank our Polish partners for their constructive cooperation", Ukrtransgaz president Igor Prokopiv commented.

The two transmission system operators have identified the necessary investments by each party in their home country. It is planned that in Ukraine the project will involve the construction of a trunk pipeline interconnector running from Drozdowichi on the Polish border to Bilche-Volytsya in Lviv region. The length of this interconnector is 110 km with a planned capacity of 8 billion cubic meters per year from Poland to Ukraine and 7 billion cubic meters from Ukraine towards Poland. The estimated cost of construction on Ukrainian territory is USD 245 million.