He played a key role in Naftogaz's landmark multi-billion dollar 2018 international arbitration court victory over Russia's Gazprom and has been a vocal opponent of the Nord Stream II pipeline project.
[10] Following the onset of Russian military aggression against Ukraine in February 2014, Vitrenko began serving Naftogaz as an advisor and was soon appointed as a senior executive.
[11] Key achievements in this role included freeing Ukraine from dependence on Russian gas imports; transforming Naftogaz from a loss-making enterprise into the biggest net contributor to the Ukrainian state budget; improving corporate governance in line with OECD guidelines; facilitating the development of a liberalized wholesale gas market; and securing two landmark victories over Russia's Gazprom in international arbitration proceedings.
[17] This was achieved by unlocking the Slovak inter connector and signing a breakthrough contract with Norwegian gas producer Statoil (currently Equinor).
[19] Following arbitration success, Vitrenko negotiated a new gas transit contract for 2020-2014 directly with Russian President Vladimir Putin[20] during a December 2019 summit meeting in Paris.
“My personal experience in dealing with Putin is that you can only make him do the right thing if you are prepared to confront Russia,” Vitrenko commented following talks in the French capital.“They only understand strong positions in negotiations, so unless you are ready to show that you have a strong position [and] you prepare in advance, you have no chance to win against Putin.”[21] Some Ukrainian politicians were critical of the new gas transit deal with Russia,[22][23][24] while many of Ukraine's partners including the US offered public congratulations.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groisman named Vitrenko the “mastermind” behind the transformation of Naftogaz with CEO Andriy Kobolev serving as a figurehead.
However, by the end of 2018, the first signs of a rift between the two were becoming apparent, with Vitrenko moving from his position as Group Chief Operating Officer to Executive Director focusing on the gas transit business and relations with Gazprom.
He claims his departure was due to his uncompromising stance on corruption and his approach to relations with Gazprom, which allegedly created issues for the Ukrainian government in their negotiations with Russia over the ongoing conflict in eastern Ukraine.
[49] Rapid increases in retail prices on the recently deregulated gas market sparked widespread public protests[50] in early 2021.
Arguing that market price fluctuations reflected abuses by dominant players including Gazprom and regional providers, Vitrenko advocated regulation.
Igor Kolomoiskiy lost informal control over Zenterenergo,[52] while Dmytro Firtash suffered setbacks in the retail gas market.
[56] He was the first Naftogaz CEO with an extensive international professional background including an MBA from INSEAD Business School and roles at a number of leading global companies.
[59] Vitrenko identified his priorities as putting Naftogaz's modernization back on track by implementing international standards and becoming a driver of market reforms.
[69] He was also a vocal supporter of Ukraine’s Euro-Atlantic integration and the further reform of the Ukrainian gas sector with a view to moving toward national energy security and sustainable development.
[70] Following his appointment as Naftogaz CEO, Vitrenko continued to call for a firmer international approach toward Russia and tougher sanctions on the Russian energy sector.
[87]” Upstream reported that Vitrenko “has shown great strength of character as the Ukrainian state oil and gas company continues to operate during the country's war with Russia.