The National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) has permitted the company designated with special obligations for the formation of natural gas resources (NAK "Naftogaz of Ukraine" – IF-U) to carry out cross-border currency transfers to fulfill obligations arising from decisions made by foreign arbitration courts.
This decision was made by the NBU board on January 13, 2025, amending its resolution No. 18 dated February 24, 2022, "On the operation of the banking system during the introduction of martial law."
Any corresponding operations by "Naftogaz" must be approved by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine.
As reported, the Stockholm Arbitration Tribunal ruled in December 2012 to impose a fine of $12.7 million on "Naftogaz of Ukraine" in response to a claim from Italia Ukraina Gas S.p.a. (IUGAS, Italy) for failing to meet obligations under a gas supply contract signed in 2003.
The contract terms between NAK and Italia Ukraina Gas stipulated gas deliveries from January 1, 2004, to December 31, 2013, with a volume of up to 1.3 billion cubic meters per year at a fixed price of $110 per thousand cubic meters.
Previously, "Naftogaz" noted that the contract with IUGAS was signed by then-deputy head of NAK Igor Voronin without the necessary approvals, and Marco Marenko, an Italian citizen who owned IUGAS at the time of the contract's signing, was later convicted in his home country for fraud and tax evasion.
According to "Naftogaz" reports, in December 2020, the company became a party to proceedings in the Stockholm arbitration regarding the aforementioned contract, with claims amounting to approximately $110 million; on August 29, 2024, these claims were partially satisfied. As of September 30, 2024, the company had reserved collateral for the enforcement of the decision amounting to 1.983 billion UAH.
In October 2024, the creditor under the arbitration ruling initiated enforcement proceedings in the Swiss Confederation, during which the NAK's assets were encumbered.