The head of Ukraine's presidential administration, Serhiy Lovochkin, said that the Dutch-British company Royal Dutch Shell could invest some $600 million in developing shale gas deposits in the Ukraine.

Lovochkin said on Aug. 31 that "this is a significant investment from one of biggest players in the world market."
According to Lovochkin, an agreement should be signed between Royal Dutch Shell and Ukrainian state energy company, Naftohaz, on Sept. 1.

The Lublin Basin in Poland has a confirmed 1.4 trillion cubic meters of shale gas, but the area on the other side of the border in Ukraine has not yet been properly explored.

Some think the Ukraine's shale gas reserves come to as much as 2 trillion cubic meters. Royal Dutch Shell is looking at spending up to $200 million on exploration of shale gas sites in Ukraine.