Shale gas was supposed to be Ukraine's ticket to greater energy independence from Russia. Chevron's decision to pull the plug has smashed those hopes. The second-largest U.S. energy producer will pull out of an agreement for exploring the Oleska field in western Ukraine, a government official said this week. It was the final blow to the country's dream of becoming a big shale-gas producer after Royal Dutch Shell Plc retreated earlier this year from a similar deal in eastern provinces riven by a bloody war with pro-Russian separatists.
Ukraine's Energy Challenge