After gas production at Ukraine’s Naftogaz took a 2% dip between January and August due to the Russian invasion, the company’s CEO Yuriy Vitrenko indicated that he planned to restore production as a result of the Ukrainian military’s recent victories, Reuters reported.

The majority of Ukrainian gas is produced by Naftogaz, which will produce 13.7 billion cubic meters of gas in 2021. The Poltava and Kharkiv regions, which have practically been liberated by recent counteroffensive actions, are where the majority of the gas resources are found.

“We continue to extract gas even in those regions where hostilities are taking place. We will increase production in the west of the country,” Yuriy Vitrenko told a televised briefing.

“We understand how important it is for Ukraine to have more gas, especially gas from its own production.”

Since 2015, Ukraine has not bought gas from Russia; instead, it now imports gas from nations in Europe. According to industry experts, Ukraine will need to import up to 3.5 billion cubic meters, or 0.5 billion cubic meters each month, for the heating season of 2022–2023.