KIEV, Dec. 13 - Ukraine has discovered a major natural gas deposit offshore in the Black Sea near Odessa as part of its bid to increase domestic gas output, Mykola Boyarkin, the acting head of the State Geological Service, said Tuesday.

The deposit, located in the north-western part of the Black Sea, is estimated to contain at least 40 billion cubic meters of gas, but probably has much more as exploration of the area still continues, he said.