on 24 August 2024, an attack in the Black Sea set fire to the so-called Boyko Rigs, gas production platforms that were seized by Russia during the occupation of Crimea but returned to Ukrainian control in 2023. Nevertheless, it is known that the Russians were able to use these towers for GPS spoofing, a process of falsifying GPS signals.
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asked energy experts about the strategic importance of these facilities, their history and the possible consequences of this event for Ukraine’s energy sector.
Strategic importance, but for whom?
"The Boyko Rigs are Ukrainian gas drilling platforms known as B312 (Petro Godovanets, built in 2010) and B319 (Ukraina, built in 2012). These platforms are located in the Black Sea off the coast of Crimea. The procurement of these towers caused a public outcry due to alleged corruption schemes and misuse of public funds linked to the former Minister of Energy of Ukraine Yuriy Boyko. In March 2014, after the annexation of Crimea by Russia, the platforms were seized by Russian troops. They were transported from the Odesa gas field closer to Crimea and used to meet the needs of the annexed peninsula.
Energy expert Volodymyr Omelchenko recalls that these towers were built shortly before the occupation of Crimea.
“It seems that their construction was part of the plan to seize Crimea, because they then supplied the occupied peninsula with natural gas. Therefore, it seems that someone in Ukraine, certain pro-Russian forces, implemented this plan specifically to prepare Crimea for energy independence after its occupation,”
– the expert suggests.
He emphasises that huge amounts of money were spent on the construction of the towers. The press and the materials of the Prosecutor General’s Office stated that $400 million was paid for each tower, and that it was paid not directly to the manufacturers, but to intermediaries. The price of each tower from the manufacturer was about half that.
“A huge amount of money was spent on them. And the purpose of gas production in the Black and Azov Seas, in the Kerch Strait, was officially declared as self-sufficiency of Crimea, so that it would not receive natural gas from mainland Ukraine,”
– omelchenko recalls.
Another energy expert, Gennadiy Ryabtsev, nevertheless emphasises the strategic importance of the fields for Ukraine’s energy sector.
“These rigs were needed to develop the fields on the Black Sea shelf, and it is quite clear that Chornomornaftogaz, as a division of Naftogaz Group, needed them to ensure an increase in production, including gas and oil raw materials,” he explains,
– he explains, but has to add that Ukraine is currently deprived of the opportunity to work on the Black Sea shelf, so it is difficult to say what the lost profit from these facilities is.
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Possible future of oil rigs
Experts prefer not to speculate on the causes of the recent fire, as it is obvious that it is a military action with corresponding military goals and objectives. However, it is also clear that it would be good to preserve these facilities for the future.
“In my opinion, the right strategy would be to prevent the enemy from using them, but not to completely destroy them. And after the war is over, we will see how they can be returned and used for the benefit of Ukraine’s energy security, including in Crimea,”
– omelchenko believes.
Ryabtsev also mentions the legal steps that Ukraine has already taken to recover the profits that Ukraine has not received.
“This will be determined by arbitration. Naftogaz Group has already filed a lawsuit regarding the violation of the agreement on mutual protection of investments by the Russian side.”
The expert is convinced that we are talking about very large and tangible funds for the state, as the project was extremely promising.
“Of all the companies of the Naftogaz of Ukraine group, Chornomornaftogaz was the most dynamically developing, so these losses were extremely significant. In fact, due to the loss of Chornomornaftogaz, Naftogaz Group was unable to significantly increase hydrocarbon production on the mainland of Ukraine,”
– says Gennadiy Ryabtsev.
Thus, although the current attack on Boyko’s towers is primarily a military one, it is likely to have long-term geopolitical and economic consequences that remain to be assessed. What is certain is the importance of these facilities for Ukraine’s energy security and the need to develop a strategy for their possible restoration and use after the war.