KHARKIV, July 23 – Kharkiv's district administrative court has held its first hearing on a claim filed by Kharkiv Regional Council deputy Ivan Varchenko (the Batkivschyna faction), who demands that the council's approval of a draft production sharing agreement between Ukraine and Shell, Nadra Yuzivska on the Yuzivska shale gas field be ruled null and void, and cancelled.

"At its meeting today [Tuesday], the court satisfied the petition by Kharkiv Regional Council that the Ecology and Natural Resources Ministry, the Energy and Coal Industry Ministry, the State Service for Geology and Deposits of Ukraine, and Shell Exploration and Production Ukraine Investments B.V. and Nadra Yuzivska LLC be involved as third parties," Varchenko told Interfax-Ukraine.