KYIV (Reuters) - Ukrainian state-owned energy company Naftogaz has launched a "powerful" new gas well at a promising field in eastern Ukraine, the company said on Wednesday.
Ukraine, which has not imported natural gas directly from Russia since 2015, buys gas from the European Union and is focusing on domestic production.
Naftogaz has said Ukraine plans to increase its natural gas output by more than 5% in 2023 to 19 billion cubic metres (bcm) despite the Russian invasion.
The new well has a depth of 5,800 metres and can produce around 0.6 million cubic metres per day.
"This is one of the most powerful wells... it has opened up the prospects of a previously underexplored block in a field in the east of the country," Naftogaz said in a statement.
The prospective gas resources of the block are estimated at more than 6 bcm, it said.
The company said two new wells were being prepared for drilling.
Naftogaz is Ukraine's largest gas producer, with output of 12.5 bcm of natural gas in 2022.