MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Royal Dutch Shell, the largest oil company in Europe by revenue, will pull out of a large-scale shale gas exploration project in Ukraine’s Donetsk and Kharkiv regions, The Financial Times reported Thursday, citing sources familiar with the situation.
According to the sources, Ukraine's government received a "Notice of Withdrawal" from the Anglo–Dutch multinational oil and gas company due to issues beyond its control.
"[Shell] has been prevented from performing its commitments under Yuzivska [a production sharing agreement] for an extensive period of time due to Force-Majeure, i.e. circumstances beyond Shell's control," the company’s email, cited by the Financial Times, read.
An agreement between Shell and Ukraine's Nadra Yuzivska LLC on shale gas production at the Yuzivka field in Kharkiv and Donetsk regions was signed in January 2013. The project had been estimated to draw a $10 billion investment, according to the company.
In December 2014, US energy company Chevron withdrew from a similar shale gas project in western Ukraine, abandoning a multibillion-dollar deal.
