Ukraine's government is still struggling to entice Western companies to invest in exploration for shale gas despite recent reforms meant to help the industry.
Maksim Karpin, a Ukrainian state official for geology and mineral resources, said Tuesday that the government was "taking every step" to meet international standards as well as the needs of the companies on the ground, but it was still waiting to see foreign investment.
Speaking on the sidelines of a conference in Poland, he said that the hostility of local communities in western Ukraine might be stalling license holders Chevron and Eni.
In eastern Ukraine, the armed conflict has made Chevron abandon drilling for conventional gas, according to Georgi Rudko, chairman of a Ukrainian state commission for mineral resources.