Over the past two years, the gas sector has turned into a zone of constant operational extremism. Shelling of infrastructure has become routine, and investments in security are a prerequisite for survival. Oleksandr Katsuba, owner of ALFA GAZ, spoke to UNN about how the gas industry operates in these conditions and how it protects its facilities from enemy attacks.
According to Oleksandr Katsuba, the market, despite the challenges of the time, demonstrates resilience.
The market structure has shown amazing resilience. Globally, nothing has changed: there are top 5 major players who hold the main volume. They continue to drill, invest, and conduct seismic exploration. The market has clearly segmented by the psychological type of investor. Those who believed in the country and had assets here before the invasion continue to work. Those who were afraid to enter before are now even more afraid. A simple law applies here: the higher the risk, the greater the potential check. But this is a check that must be fought for in conditions of military chaos.
The issue of protecting gas production facilities remains important. As Oleksandr Katsuba explains, there is no full-fledged physical protection.
"There is no such thing as full-fledged physical protection for a gas facility. You cannot guess where the next missile will land. Shelling occurs on average once every two weeks. It's like throwing lit firecrackers at a gas station where open fuel canisters are standing. We deliberately abandoned our own anti-drone systems. Why? Because such a system itself becomes a magnet for missiles. In addition, the bureaucracy in this matter is still impenetrable: you need to attach a military unit, get piles of permits... The state has not yet offered a transparent mechanism for how businesses can officially buy a 'subscription' for air defense protection (laughs)," says Katsuba.
However, the issue of protecting people is being resolved - each complex gas treatment plant has a full-fledged bomb shelter.
"This is basic," Katsuba emphasizes.
As for the "hardware" - it is necessary to have a reserve of it to restart the installation in case of destruction.
"As for the hardware, we have switched to a 'double stock' strategy. Since the production time for equipment has increased from 3 to 11 months, we keep a 100% reserve. Conventionally, if a working 'machine' is standing at the field, then an identical new one is lying disassembled in the garage. If there is a hit, we simply reassemble the object from scratch. We look at the sky, pray to God, and keep spare hardware at hand. There is no other way in 2026," Oleksandr Katsuba explained.
The industry is also affected by the stagnation of industrial production in general.
"When there is no electricity 50% of the time, factories simply do not consume gas," Katsuba notes.