Ukrnafta to gain right to store fuel in Ministry of Defence underground facilities without licences

Ukrnafta to gain right to store fuel in Ministry of Defence underground facilities without licences
Ukrnafta to gain right to store fuel in Ministry of Defence underground facilities without licences

Approval of experimental storage mechanism

The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine adopted Resolution No. 1394 dated 4 November 2026, approving an experimental project. The document allows Joint-Stock Company “Ukrnafta” to transfer petroleum products for responsible storage to underground facilities under the management of the Ministry of Defence. A special procedure for accounting, licensing and control has been established for the implementation of such operations.

Time and participant restrictions

The introduced mechanism will be in effect during the period of martial law, although its maximum duration cannot exceed two years from the date the resolution enters into force. Joint-Stock Company “Ukrnafta” is designated as the sole company granted the right to use this procedure. Other players in the fuel market, particularly private enterprises, will not have access to the introduced instrument.

Role of the Ministry of Defence and licensing specifics

The Ministry of Defence will determine the list of storage enterprises, specific underground facilities, their capacity and the volumes of petroleum products that may be accepted. Responsible storage may be carried out by legal entities subordinate to the ministry. A key feature of the new procedure is that such companies will be able to conduct fuel storage operations without obtaining the corresponding licence.

Accounting specifics and regime distinction

The creation of excise warehouses with a special status, which will not have standard identification characteristics, is provided for the accounting of operations. This experimental project does not apply to underground facilities designated by the previously adopted Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 1037 dated 13 August 2026. The latter regulates the mechanism for storing petroleum products that form part of minimum reserves during martial law.

Thus, the government has clearly distinguished between two regimes: one concerning state minimum reserves, and the other concerning petroleum products of Joint-Stock Company “Ukrnafta” that will be transferred for responsible storage to designated Ministry of Defence enterprises. The introduced procedure provides the state company with an additional opportunity to place fuel reserves in underground infrastructure for the duration of the experiment.

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