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Automatically translated version. May contain inaccuracies compared to the original.
Private companies own 200 special permits for subsoil use in Ukraine — this is 33,61% of the total. About 20 permits anticipate work on temporarily occupied territories.
This was reported by the Anti-Corruption Center (ACC), which analyzed holders of 117 special permits. Most of them are connected with Forbes-listed businessmen and well-known entrepreneurs who are regularly covered by the media.
The largest number of permits among the mentioned businessmen belongs to the Zlochevsky family — 37. He previously worked in state bodies that issue licenses for mineral extraction, and during President Viktor Yanukovych's tenure he held the position of Ecology Minister. Later his family acquired gas assets.
In 2023 the High Anti-Corruption Court found Zlochevsky guilty in a bribe case. He struck a deal with investigators and redirected 500 million UAH to the needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The family’s companies control his daughters Anna and Karina through a string of entities, both of whom hold Cypriot citizenship. In 2025 the head of the Parliament's Finance Committee Danilo Hetmanets reported the preparation of a submission to the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) for reviewing and auditing the licenses granted for subsoil use.
The Kozytsky family controls 21 special permits. Zinoviy Kozytsky, father of the head of Lviv regional military administration Maksym Kozytsky, owns the group “Zakhidnadsraservis.” He personally controls eight licenses, another 11 — jointly with Czech billionaire Karel Komarek. Two other licenses belong to him together with co-owners, among whom Vitaliy Antonov — owner of the OKKO network of gas stations.
Victor Pinchuk controls 14 special permits for gas-bearing subsoil in Ivano-Frankivsk, Poltava, Sumy, Kharkiv, and Chernihiv regions. In ACC material he is described as the second wealthiest person in Ukraine after Rinat Akhmetov. Two licenses — for Vyshochanske and Zaitske fields — are located on the temporarily occupied territory of Luhansk region.
Rinat Akhmetov holds 10 special permits through affiliated companies. Seven of them relate to hydrocarbon exploration in Poltava and Kharkiv regions. Three licenses he acquired already during the full-scale Russian invasion. Another three licenses for extraction belong to PrJSC Naftogazvidobuvannya, controlled by the businessman.
Oleksandr Katsuba has nine special permits. In 2012–2014 years he was deputy head of Naftogaz and one of the participants in the case of buying the so-called Boyko towers — oil drilling rigs bought at inflated prices. Katsuba struck a deal with investigators and was released after paying a fine of 3,5 million dollars.
At the beginning of 2026 year Katsuba registered his ex-wife and father-in-law’s business, including the company “Nadra-geoinvest.” According to media reports, in 2023 year this group entered the top three largest private gas producers in Ukraine.
Gennady Butkevich, owner of the ATB supermarket chain, is linked to six special permits. Five of them belong to his companies and concern plots in Kharkiv and Odesa regions. The sixth permit — for the Sieverodonetsk area on the temporarily occupied Luhansk region — is connected to him indirectly. The beneficiary of the owner company is the chairman of the board of directors of BGV Group Management, founded by Butkevich.
Another six special permits are connected with Vadym Novinsky — founder of Smart Holding, who is under sanctions for aiding Russia. In August 2025 year he announced halting investments in Ukrainian gas subsoil.
Before the sanctions, Novinsky rewrote the business to other people. According to ACC, the Ministry of Justice found them resembling nominal owners, after which Novinsky was forcibly returned to registries as a beneficiary.
He is currently listed as the beneficiary of companies that own three licenses to extract in Kharkiv and Poltava regions. Another license concerns the Azov shelf, where Novinsky has a joint interest with Ruben Zakharian. In addition, two licenses are associated with Regal Petroleum Corporation, part of the British Enwell Energy group. By December 2022 year Novinsky was the beneficiary of the latter.
Document: PDF proof of the original version of the news item "Злочевський, Козицький, Пінчук і Ахметов: хто володіє газовими родовищами України". It records the publication content at the moment of the first scan, the preservation date and the source: Rozsliduvach.
