Ukrainian agricultural companies have begun biomethane delivery into the gas distribution system (GDS) of Ukraine. The VITAGRO group of companies was the first one constructed a biomethane plant with 3 mcm of annual capacity at the end of 2023. Connection to the GDS took place in October 2024. Currently, the company pumps about 6,000 m3 of biomethane per day. Feedstock for biomethane production is mainly livestock waste.
The second entity starting biomethane pumping into the GDS is Hals Agro company. It has also 3 mcm of biomethane of annual capacity, and the current injection volume is 2,000-3,000 m3 per day. The company commissioned the biomethane plant on the basis of its own biogas plant in spring 2023. Feedstocks used for production are livestock waste, sugar beet pulp, and corn silage.
At the beginning of 2025, the MHP Oril-Lider division in the Dnipropetrovsk region, with an annual capacity of 11 mcm joined the list of biomethane suppliers. The main feedstock is chicken manure. By the end of 2024, about one mcm of biomethane had been pumped into underground gas storage (UGS) facilities. According to forecasts, about 2 mcm of biomethane should be accumulated in the UGS facilities in the near future.
The first export shipment took place on February 7, 2025, when VITAGRO shipped 67,500 m3 of biomethane via Slovakia to Germany. The buyer was ERU Europe, which specializes in energy trading in Europe. VITAGRO is currently preparing the next shipment for the delivery.
The next exporter is Oril-Leader. On February 11, the company sent 27,400 m3 of biomethane to Germany across the Ukrainian-Polish border. The buyer was the Swiss-Dutch company Vitol, which is engaged in trade, logistics and distribution of energy resources, one of the world’s largest traders of oil and petroleum products. Hals Agro plans to export biomethane from the plant in Chernihiv region in the near future.
The conditions for connecting to gas system and the tariffs for transporting biomethane are identical to those for natural gas producers. This simplifies the integration of biomethane into the overall supply system and allows it to be exported through existing infrastructure.
Currently there is no local biomethane market in Ukraine. Due to low domestic gas prices and the lack of sufficient incentives for biomethane production and consumption, it is practically impossible to sell this product within Ukraine. The main task for Ukraine is developing the domestic market for biomethane consumption.
At least 1-2 more companies may join the existing biomethane producers in 2025. These are companies that are currently completing the construction of biogas upgrading units to biomethane. At the same time, further development of the market will depend primarily on the political situation and the prospects for the end of the war. The second important factor will be the market value of biomethane, which the first exporters will receive. If the price turns out to be attractive, at least 10 new biomethane plants may appear in 2026. Some of them will be created by modernizing existing biogas plants, others will be built from scratch with a focus on biomethane production.
Source: https://latifundist.com
