Ukraine could soon become the primary supplier of biomethane to the European Union, with its market share potentially reaching 20% in the future, according to Georgii Geletukha, Chairman of the Bioenergy Association of Ukraine (BAU).
"Ukraine has nearly ideal conditions for biomethane production. We have medium and large agricultural enterprises managing around 3,000 hectares of land. This allows for a stable supply of raw materials for biomethane plants from a single source. Additionally, Ukraine has a well-developed gas infrastructure, including distribution networks and a gas transportation system, with the highest gas network coverage density in all of Europe. Given our vast agricultural lands, we also have the largest resource base. This makes biomethane production a highly promising industry for us," Geletukha stated at the Ukrainian Investment Congress in Kyiv.
He highlighted the EU’s ambitious plans for biomethane production and consumption, targeting 35 billion cubic meters by 2030. However, current production within the EU stands at just 3 billion cubic meters. Based on industry trends, the EU is expected to increase its production to 20 billion cubic meters within five years.
Geletukha explained that the slow development of the EU's biomethane market is primarily due to a lack of large, available agricultural land, limiting the ability to produce sufficient raw materials for processing.
"According to all forecasts, the EU will not be able to meet its 35 billion cubic meter target in time. Trends indicate they may reach around 20 billion cubic meters in the next five years. The European agricultural market is already in deficit, and this will likely continue until at least 2050. After 2030, the EU aims to expand its biomethane production and consumption to 100 billion cubic meters by 2050, but they will face the same challenge of insufficient raw materials," he emphasized.
He noted that if Ukraine were already producing 15 billion cubic meters of biomethane annually, the EU would eagerly purchase the entire supply.
Currently, three major Ukrainian producers—MHP, Vitagro, and Hals Agro—are engaged in biomethane production, with two of them already exporting and the third stockpiling supplies for imminent exports. By 2025, more Ukrainian producers, including another MHP facility, Teofipol Energy Company, and Yuzef-Mykolaiv Biogas Company, are expected to enter the market. Collectively, Ukrainian biomethane plants will produce 111 million cubic meters per year.
With production costs estimated at €900 per 1,000 cubic meters for biomethane derived from plant waste and €1,100–1,200 per 1,000 cubic meters for biomethane from livestock waste, Ukraine could generate up to €100 billion annually from exports to the EU, Geletukha projected.
On February 7, 2025, Ukrainian energy holding Vitagro exported the first batch of Ukrainian biomethane—67,000 cubic meters—from its 3-million-cubic-meter-capacity plant in Khmelnytskyi region to Germany.
On February 11, MHP’s Oril-Leader plant in Dnipropetrovsk region exported 27,400 cubic meters of biomethane, becoming the second Ukrainian company to do so. The biomethane was transported via pipelines through the Ukraine-Poland border to Germany, with Vitol as the buyer. Oril-Leader has an annual production capacity of 11 million cubic meters.
Additionally, agroholding Hals Agro has built a 3-million-cubic-meter-capacity biomethane plant in Chernihiv region. The facility is already connected to the gas network and is preparing for its first biomethane export transaction.
